The Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) is expected to begin procuring COVID-19 vaccines in an attempt to improve access to vaccines in Latin America and the Caribbean.
In a media release on Wednesday, PAHO noted that the procurement of the vaccines will come through the use of PAHO’s Revolving Fund. The revolving fund is expected to expand access beyond the 20 per cent of vaccines that the COVAX facility offers.
The fund has procured other vaccines for the region for the past 42 years at low prices and as a result of the announcement is receiving requests from countries to have COVID-19 vaccines for the last three months of 2021 and for 2022.
PAHO Director Dr Carissa Etienne stated that 20 countries have so far expressed interest even as the number continues to grow. “The region is still short of the doses needed to turn the tide of the pandemic,” she said.
PAHO said the initiative will benefit every country in the Pan American region, particularly those that lack adequate resources and power to negotiate and secure vaccines necessary for their population.
The fund has previously served as one of the purchasing mechanisms of COVAX and worked directly with countries that have requested support to deliver donations through bilateral deals. As a result, over 20 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been deployed to Latin American and Caribbean countries, procured through COVAX.
“Our region needs to pursue all possible avenues to expedite access and ensure countries reach their vaccination goals,” the PAHO director said. With that, she added that more donations are still needed even as they also need COVAX to deliver on its original commitment to provide vaccines for 20 per cent of the various country’s populations.
