Indonesia Expects Covid-19 Vaccine From Gavi Covax Facility By 2021

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Indonesia and other countries around the globe might just find the break they need against Covid-19 within months.

“Indonesia might receive [Covid-19] vaccines through multilateral channels by 2021,” said Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi during a signing of a Procurement Service MoU between the Indonesian Ministry of Health and Unicef on September 16.

"[The World Health Organization] confirmed that Indonesia has met the criteria for an Advanced Market Commitment country. This entitles us to receive financial breaks through the Official Development Assistance [ODA] mechanism within the framework of the Gavi Covax Facility.”

Also read: Indonesia Calls for Greater ASEAN-US Cooperation to Combat Covid-19

Retno added that the ODA and the Gavi Covax Facility will enable Indonesia to obtain vaccines for an affordable price. “We are keeping in touch with the Gavi and Covax Facility on the availability of the vaccine, their cost and other aspects,” she noted.

“The Gavi Covax Facility aims to distribute more than 2 billion doses of [the Covid-19] vaccine by the end of 2021 to every country in the world.”

The Gavi Covax Facility is a joint initiative of the World Health Organization (WHO), the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop a Covid-19 vaccine.

Also read: UAE, Indonesia to Develop A Covid-19 Vaccine

“We are also constantly in touch with the institutions behind the initiative to ensure [Indonesia] and other nations get access to an accessible, affordable vaccine.”

She added that the Gavi Covax Facility is one of a number of bilateral and multilateral options that the Indonesian Foreign Ministry is exploring with foreign goverments and institutions in its efforts to obtain a Covid-19 vaccine for Indonesians.

Retno and State Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir have been actively seeking international cooperation to manufacture a Covid-19 vaccine. Their collaborations included Memoranda of Understanding with the Chinese company Sinovac and G42 from the United Arab Emirates.

(Writer: Sania Mashabi | Editor: Fabian Januarius Kuwado)

Sources:

https://nasional.kompas.com/read/2020/09/16/13145861/menlu-vaksin-covid-19-dari-luar-negeri-diperkirakan-tersedia-2021. 

https://nasional.kompas.com/read/2020/09/16/12412311/menlu-indonesia-konsisten-mendorong-akses-vaksin-covid-19-yang-setara.