World News | Japan Gives USD 800M to UN-backed COVID-19 Vaccine Programme

Tokyo, Jun 2 (AP) Japan's prime minister announced Wednesday an additional USD 800 million contribution to the U.N.-backed initiative to provide COVID-19 vaccines to poor countries, a four-fold increase of Japanese funding for the COVAX programme.

The pledge by Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga comes as his government attempts to accelerate vaccinations in Japan, one of the world's least inoculated countries, only about 50 days before it hosts the Olympics amid a continuing surge in infections.

He spoke as Japan co-sponsored a fundraising event for COVAX with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, which helps run the programme. The programme managers are seeking about USD 2 billion more to reach a target of USD 8.3 billion for its effort to fund free vaccines for low- and middle-income countries around the world.

“Now is the time for us to act,” Suga said, leading a parade of world and humanitarian leaders who announced pledges and commitments on Wednesday. He said the additional USD 800 million will bring Japan's contribution to USD 1 billion, second to the USD 2.5 billion pledged by the United States.

Suga also announced plans to provide 30 million doses of a vaccine manufactured under license in Japan to other countries and regions in need. He did not specify the maker or recipients.

Officials have said Japan is considering providing the AstraZeneca vaccine to Taiwan as the island faces a resurgence of infections.

Japan has approved three foreign-developed vaccines and is currently using ones from Pfizer In. and Moderna Inc. It has no immediate plans to use the AstraZeneca vaccine, which is easier to store and transport than the other two vaccines, which require special freezers, officials said.

Suga also introduced a new vaccine strategy adopted Tuesday and vowed to develop Japan's own vaccines and provide them globally and to improve the clinical testing environment to prepare for future pandemics.

Under the long-term strategy, Japan will aim for the speedy development and rollout of new vaccines. In addition to a lack of locally developed vaccines, Japan's lengthy drug approval process was criticized as a major obstacle that delayed vaccinations during the pandemic.

The summit was also attended by US Vice President Kamala Harris, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and philanthropist Bill Gates.

Globally, more than 3.5 million people are confirmed to have died from the coronavirus. The US has seen the largest confirmed loss of life from COVID-19, at more than 594,000 people. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)