UPSC Articles
Ghana first country to receive vaccine under COVAX
Part of: GS Prelims and GS – II – Health; International Relations & GS – III – Sci & Tech
In news
- Ghana has become the first country in the world to receive a shipment of coronavirus vaccines under the COVAX program.
- About 600,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccinewere sent to Accra in Ghana on February 23.
- The vaccine is manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (SII), Pune which is the largest vaccine manufacturer in the world
Important value additions
- The COVAX program is led by the vaccine alliance GAVI, WHO and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) in partnership with UNICEF, vaccine manufacturers and the World Bank, among others.
- Aim: To ensure equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines globally
- It is supposed to be the largest vaccine procurement and supply operation in history.
- The program wants to vaccinate roughly 20 per cent of the population in the 92 Advance Market Commitment (AMC) countries, which include middle and lower-income nations that cannot afford to pay for COVID-19 vaccines.
- Countries with a Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of less than US $4000 and some other countries eligible under the World Bank International Development Association (IDA) shall be given top priority.
Do you know?
- The AstraZeneca vaccine is known as Covishield in India.
- It was given Emergency Use Listing (EUL) by the WHO in February, 2021.
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