WHO: Setting up COVID-19 vaccine hub in SA is a major milestone for the continent

Africa is currently grappling with a fast-staging third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, with cases spreading rapidly and projected to surpass the peak of the second wave witnessed earlier this year. The continent has only about 12 million people fully vaccinated, raising concerns about how Africa will navigate through this challenging period. To shed light on the situation, CNBC Africa spoke with Dr. Richard Miyagi, the World Health Organization's coordinator for vaccines and development in Africa. Dr. Miyagi highlighted the importance of continuing to implement public health and social measures while leveraging vaccines as a crucial tool in the fight against COVID-19. He emphasized the urgency of increasing vaccination rates to combat the current wave effectively. Given the pressing need for vaccine doses in Africa, Dr. Miyagi discussed the timeline for the continent's next vaccine shipment. He revealed that WHO, in collaboration with partners through COVAX, is anticipating the fourth allocation of doses in July to support countries in expanding their vaccination efforts. The limited vaccine supply in Africa has underscored the critical need for additional doses to reach more of the population. A promising development in the fight against COVID-19 is the establishment of a COVID-MR&A vaccine technology transfer hub in South Africa. Dr. Miyagi lauded this initiative as a significant step towards boosting vaccine production on the continent. The hub, a joint effort between the African Union, WHO, and other partners, aims to address the vaccine production gap in Africa and pave the way for local manufacturing of messenger RNA vaccines. Dr. Miyagi expressed hope that the hub's establishment could lead to the production of vaccines in South Africa within the next 9 to 12 months. Furthermore, Dr. Miyagi highlighted Africa's efforts to enhance vaccine production capacity beyond South Africa. He mentioned Senegal's plans to begin manufacturing COVID-19 vaccines and Rwanda's expressed interest in joining the messenger RNA vaccine production scheme. With WHO's support, these countries are moving towards self-sufficiency in vaccine production, a crucial step in securing vaccine access for their populations. The discussion also touched on the importance of reforming the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement to facilitate easier access to key vaccine technologies. Dr. Miyagi acknowledged the complexity of TRIPS negotiations but emphasized the growing global movement to waive patents and other restrictive measures during pandemics. Drawing parallels to the successful initiatives seen during the HIV pandemic, he expressed optimism that collective efforts could lead to greater access to vaccine production resources. As Africa continues its battle against the COVID-19 pandemic, the collaborative efforts of WHO, African countries, and partners are crucial in strengthening vaccine development and production capacity on the continent. With a focus on increasing vaccination rates and ensuring equitable access to vaccines, Africa is poised to overcome the challenges posed by the third wave of the pandemic and emerge stronger in the fight against COVID-19.