Covid vaccines: Are we ready?

A few global biotech research institutes and leading drug-makers have proved soothsayers wrong and come up with effective Covid-19 vaccines much ahead of projections.

People's attention is now more focussed on effectiveness and availability of vaccines than on raging second wave of the deadly pathogen.

A sense of urgency is noticed among all nations, resourceful or otherwise, about procuring vaccines. As expected, the wealthy and developed nations are much ahead in the race. They had made advance payments worth billions of dollar to the leading pharmaceutical companies involved with the development of vaccines.

Barring the powerful and wealthy ones, there are a few countries that stand to reap limited benefits in the matters of receiving vaccines earlier than most others. They are the countries that have accepted the requests for being involved with the third-phase trials of vaccines. These countries would get preference over others when it comes to the distribution of vaccines. Even they might expect some discount.  

The vaccine developers do not choose all countries for vaccine trials. Rather they select countries according to the needs of the vaccine research works.

Fortunately, Bangladesh is one of those countries. Unfortunately, it could not exploit that advantage for it failed to respond to requests for vaccine trials.

Reasons are, possibly, best known to the relevant authorities. Some say it is geopolitics that has played its part in depriving the country of an advantage in vaccine procurement. Indecision could be another factor.

Sanofi reportedly has approached Bangladesh for the phase-3 trial for the vaccine being developed by it. The government decision on the issue is still awaited.

It is almost certain that Oxford-Astrazeneca's vaccine will be the first one to enter Bangladesh. However, all depends on the regulatory clearance in the UK. Some issues over the efficacy of the vaccine have cropped up. Once the clearance is available, the production of the vaccine in the UK and the Serum Institute of India (SII) would begin immediately. The Beximco Pharma, a leading pharmaceutical company of Bangladesh, under a contract, will procure 30 million doses for the government. The vaccines will enter Bangladesh in phases. 

Though a few top notches had given an impression that the Oxford vaccine would be available in February, it is unlikely to reach the country before March/ April next. Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are likely to be available in the US markets within a few weeks. The Pfizer vaccine has already received the UK's regulatory clearance. However, those vaccines are unlikely to reach Bangladesh. The government also has not made any attempt to procure either of the vaccines since the country does not have the facility to preserve and transport those vaccines. Besides, the US vaccines that have used mRNA technology, are quite expensive.

The overall response to the need for vaccination against Covid in Bangladesh is very positive unlike many other European and  Latin American countries. But a few questions are already agitating the minds of many about the proper distribution of vaccines on their arrival.

The government says it is preparing a list of people who would get the vaccines on a priority basis. It will follow the WHO (World Health Organisation) guideline in this respect. The priority recipients include frontline health workers and elderly people.   

But what is feared is that the powerful quarters, as witnessed in most cases in this part of the world, might try to break the queue to get the vaccines undeservedly. If that happens, it would be treated as a bigger scam than the one involving procurement of face masks or fake Covid tests done by the Regent Hospital.

The government might think of involving the disciplined forces in the distribution of vaccines as and when those reach the country.

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