Covid-19: what about vaccines in Africa?
The Astra Zeneca vaccine was chosen in particular by Morocco because it is easier to store and deliver (Illustrative image).
© REUTERS / DADO RUVIC
Text by: Christina Okello
5 mins
Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca ... the race for vaccines against Covid-19 in the world is accelerating, a race which does not leave Africa indifferent.
If the time is not yet for vaccination, several African countries have already started to experiment with candidate vaccines for a mass immunization campaign, like Morocco, Guinea by the way. by South Africa.
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Pending the start of vaccination and to block the road to Covid-19, African countries are getting organized.
Morocco, which has yet to validate the marketing of two potential vaccines, has been carrying
out awareness campaigns
among its population for four months.
"
The medical profession is unanimous on the interest of vaccination
", told RFI Allal Amraoui, surgeon and deputy in Fez, east of Rabat.
“
It's a tradition.
The Moroccan is not going to discover the vaccine, a Moroccan has his children vaccinated, my children myself have received a dozen vaccines
”, specifies the doctor who also heads a research center on health policies.
AstraZeneca in the lead
Morocco has ordered 25 million doses of the British vaccine AstraZeneca and 40 million doses of the Chinese vaccine Sinopharm.
Two vaccines, which according to Amraoui, are more in tune with Moroccan and more broadly African realities.
“
These are classic vaccines that Morocco is familiar with.
They can be stored at temperatures of 2 to 8 degrees, and we have the means to deploy them almost everywhere, even in the depths of the country,
”he said.
These logistical issues also dictated Uganda's choice for the AstraZeneca vaccine, which has just been licensed by the UK.
Covax device
To finance the acquisition of doses, Kampala relies on the Covax system, piloted by the international alliance GAVI.
Created by the World Health Organization (WHO), this mechanism aims to immunize 20% of the most vulnerable people in 92 low-income countries.
The price of the vaccine varies between 20 and 30 dollars for the most sophisticated.
And at the rate of two doses per person, it quickly becomes very expensive.
A mitigated cost by the Covax device.
"
The Covax device provides around $ 136 million and the Ugandan state is contributing $ 10 million
," said Misaki Wayengera, chair of the scientific advisory committee for the Ministry of Health in Uganda.
“
This money is used for the first phase of vaccination for 9 million Ugandans.
For the second phase, it will be up to the government to provide the 136
million dollars and, for this, we are counting on the support of the private sector,
”he adds.
►Also read: Covid-19: what access to a future vaccine for Africa?
Delays, bilateral agreements
Two billion doses are expected, but they are slow to come.
While waiting for the delivery, scheduled for next March, some states do not hesitate to negotiate directly with the main manufacturers to obtain vaccine doses more quickly, sparking a war of influence between the world powers.
"
Some African countries are reorienting themselves towards China and Russia to have vaccines by playing on the geopolitical map
", tells Mamady Traoré, doctor and referent for vaccination and responses to epidemics within the NGO Médecins sans Frontières.
Guinea recently entered the race by obtaining 60 doses of the Russian vaccine Sputnik 5. Elsewhere, South Africa, hard hit by the pandemic, is conducting clinical trials with the American vaccine Johnson & Johnson.
"
Today, there are around 40 countries that have worked on their vaccine preparation and introduction plans and are now ready to be able to vaccinate their populations as soon as the first vaccines are available for Africa
", adds Mamady Traoré.
Validation process
This first goes through a validation process by the health agencies of the country in question and the World Health Organization (WHO).
"
The major criterion undoubtedly remains the harmlessness and especially the effectiveness of the product so we first look to see if the product is harmless
", explains Doctor Richard Mihigo, head of emergencies and vaccines at the WHO Africa office in Brazzaville , online from Kigali.
“
The goal is to have a vaccine that protects but does not create other problems.
"
WHO has recommended the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine, already used by several countries.
"
For everything else, whether it is the Russian vaccine, Chinese and all vaccines which are in the last phase of clinical trials, we do not yet have enough data to certify their efficacy and safety,
" adds Richard Mihigo.
Still slow technology transfer
While some countries are already packaging the vaccine, there is no technology transfer yet.
The formula is kept very secret by the Chinese, the Russians and other manufacturing countries, regrets Mr. Traoré of MSF.
“
There is no transparency with regard to bilateral agreements between countries and pharmaceutical companies,
” he complains, while calling on African countries to promote a relaxation of intellectual property rules.
The key: better access to drugs, equipment and Covid-19 tests, saving more lives.
“
From then on, Africa could hope to have its own vaccine.
"
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