African Union And Johnson & Johnson Agree To Supply 400 Million Doses Of COVID-19 Vaccine

Vaksin Johnson & Johnson. (Wikimedia Commons/New York National Guard Flickr)

JAKARTA - Single-dose COVID-19 vaccine manufacturer Johnson & Johnson announced it will supply up to 400 million doses of vaccine to the African Union (AU) starting in the third quarter of this year, on Monday, March 29.

This is in line with the signing of an agreement between the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust (AVAT) and Janssen Pharmaceutica NV, regarding the shipment of 220 million doses of Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

In addition, AVAT can also order an additional 180 million doses by 2022. This agreement is seen as important, along with the COVID-19 vaccination target for 60 percent of Africa's population.

It is known, at least nearly 121 thousand people died from COVID-19 throughout Africa. Meanwhile, cases of infection reached 4.18 million people.

The deal follows months of negotiations with the AU, which announced a provisional agreement in January to purchase a total of 270 million doses of vaccine from J&J, AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech. The status of talks with the other two companies is not known.

Although present later, after AstraZeneca and Pfizer, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is widely accepted, especially in Africa. AVAT said on Monday, the majority of the 55 AU member states showed a strong preference for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

"Johnson & Johnson only needs one dose, it makes it very well programmed to launch," said John Nkengasong, director of the African Center for Disease Control and Prevention, told Reuters.

In February, South Africa discontinued use of AstraZeneca injections, after data showed that use of AstraZeneca injections provided minimal protection against mild to moderate infections caused by the dominant variant in the country.

Meanwhile, the Pfizer vaccine has more complex storage and transport requirements than other vaccines, making it more difficult to apply in warmer climates or in poorer countries.

Africa is also grappling with a more contagious variant identified in South Africa, amid concerns about delays in the delivery of AstraZeneca injections through the COVAX scheme aimed at supplying poor countries.

"We need to immunize at least 60 percent of our population, to get rid of the virus from our continent. The Johnson & Johnson agreement allows us to move towards achieving this target," said Nkengasong.

For information, most of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine supply for Africa, will be produced by Aspen Pharma in South Africa, according to AVAT. Aspen has an agreement with Johnson & Johnspn to produce 300 million doses of the vaccine.

Meanwhile, as part of the AU's planned vaccination program, the African Import-Export Bank (Afreximbank) has approved funding of up to US $ 2 billion for member countries to purchase Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine through the AU.