Moderna to Sell 110M COVID-19 Vaccines To African Union

On October 26, Moderna said it has entered an agreement with the African union to sell 100 million COVID-19 doses of vaccine. Company by the fourth quarter of 2021 it will deliver 15 million shots, by the first quarter of 2022 35 million, and by the second quarter of 2022 60 million. It said it will provide the doses at very low prices.

The New York Times criticized Moderna health experts this month stating that the majority of all its shots have gone to countries that are wealthier and it has shipped the biggest share of its doses to high-income countries than any other vaccine maker.

Times reported that the Africans that are fully vaccinated against covid-19 are fewer than 6% and fewer than one-third of African nations had fully vaccinated 10% of their populations by the start of this month.

Moderna said it could not supply enough shots to low-income countries because it does not have enough manufacturing capacity and all the production it made this year was tied up in orders from governments which includes the European Union and the U.S.

Moderna said it is working on plans that will enable it to fill its vaccine doses in Africa soon as 2023. Previously the company announced that it will build an mRNA manufacturing facility in Africa. Times reported that BioNTech also said it will build an mRNA vaccine facility in Africa.

“We believe that our vaccines can play a huge role in combating the requirement of low-income countries with the combination of high phase 3 efficacy against covid-19, superior handling and storage conditions, and strong durability in the real-world evidence,” Stéphane Bancel CEO. “We recognize that access to covid-19 vaccine continues to be a challenge in many parts of the world and we remain committed to assisting to protect as many people as possible globally”.