While some vaccines have proven effective in late-stage testing, including the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine being used in the US, UK and Canada, regulators in Asia-Pacific are taking steps
A medical worker holds a vial of Covid-19 vaccine in California, USA on December 17.
In Japan, where vaccination is expected to begin at the end of February 2021, the Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Agency has emphasized the need to collect data on the impact of vaccines on the Japanese population instead of relying solely on
In Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison is not rushing to deploy Pfizer-BioNTech but is monitoring developments in the UK and US.
Vietnam, one of the countries that has successfully controlled the epidemic in Asia, prioritizes measures to contain the virus and registered to buy vaccines from Russia and the UK.
On December 14, Singapore became the first Asian country to approve Pfizer-BioNTech.
Other famous vaccines awaiting approval include those from Moderna and Oxford-AstraZeneca, which are 95% and 62-90% effective, respectively.
Which vaccines countries use will depend on agreements signed with manufacturers and the Covax Facility, a WHO-funded initiative to ensure equitable access for lower-income countries.
`Cost is a big issue that can prevent some countries from getting the vaccine they want. This includes not only the price of the vaccine but also the cost of infrastructure needed for storage and distribution,` John
Despite Covax’s efforts, there are concerns that lower-income countries in the region are being left behind.
In Southeast Asia, countries are facing a myriad of challenges related to cost, storage and distribution.
Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia mainly depend on Covax’s commitment to provide 20% of the necessary doses at low prices, or buy vaccines from Russia and China.
In November, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said at the ASEAN summit that the country would take `practical actions to make vaccines affordable and available`.
Indonesia has 125.5 million doses of Sinovac vaccine, while the Philippines is considering buying 20 – 50 million doses and Singapore has ordered an unknown quantity.
Despite positioning itself as the region’s leading country in vaccine deployment, Thailand has only ordered 26 million doses, enough to vaccinate less than 20% of the population, through a contract worth 80 million USD for the Oxford-vaccine.
Vietnam also has high hopes for domestically produced vaccines, as four domestic companies are developing vaccines.
Andrea Taylor, from the Duke Global Health Institute in Durham, North Carolina, said high-income countries have bought more than half of the world’s vaccine doses through early purchase agreements, despite accounting for only 16% of the population.
`Currently many lower-income countries, including Asia-Pacific countries, are facing large gaps in vaccine-to-population ratios,` Taylor said.
`We are aware that inequitable access to vaccines will lead to a worse situation, both in terms of health and economic recession. High-income countries face a total GDP loss of 120 billion
Jerome Kim, head of the International Vaccine Institute in Seoul, South Korea, said fair distribution is a matter of great concern, but he predicts vaccines will become popular from the second quarter of 2021. Chinese vaccines and
`Vaccine availability may depend on the supply capacity of manufacturers, Covax’s participation and global support for Covax Facilit,` Kim said.
Even with adequate vaccine supplies, some countries may face significant logistical challenges.
In India, many concerns have been raised about human resources to vaccinate more than 1.3 billion people.
T. Sundararaman, coordinator of the advocacy group People’s Health Movement, said these health workers are essential to carry out existing vaccination programs, antenatal care, home birth care and other
The government-appointed panel of experts has promised that `every Indian who needs to be vaccinated will be vaccinated`.
While New Delhi has not given a specific timeframe for starting vaccinations, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said they could start in January if safety protocols are met.
In the Philippines, Carlito Galvez Jnr, head of the country’s Covid-19 vaccination program, estimates that vaccinating 60-70 million Filipinos, or 60-70% of the population, could take 3-5 years, based on
Some governments in the region may face public skepticism about new vaccines, especially those from China and Russia.
`Sinovac has not announced the results of its effectiveness but the Indonesian government has already bought it. So this is fueling conspiracy theories,` Wiratama said.
Masayuki Miyasaka, professor emeritus of immunology at Osaka University, said many Japanese people are `worried about side effects`.
`There is information that hundreds of people have participated in clinical trials of the Pfizer vaccine in Japan. But I do not think this number is enough to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine. I am not sure about the Drug Agency
Tam, a vaccine expert at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, said while vaccine resistance and vaccine nationalism are concerns, there is still reason for optimism.
`WHO’s Covax program hopes to overcome this barrier by providing recommendations based on scientific and medical grounds,` Tam said.
Phuong Vu (According to SCMP)