COVAX targets 70% COVID-19 immunisation coverage by mid-2022 amid Omicron alert

COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access or COVAX has set the target to achieve 70% immunisation coverage by mid-2022 amid concerns of needing variants-specific vaccines and other changes to the vaccination campaigns. The Independent Allocation of Vaccines Group (IVAG) of COVAX issued a set of recommendations to make the allocation of COVID-19 vaccines more equitable and more effective. 

It is to note that COVAX is a worldwide initiative aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines directed by the GAVI vaccine alliance, World Health Organization (WHO) and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations. IVAG was established a year ago in order to validate and assess vaccine allocations recommended by the United Nations (UN) health agency and GAVI task force. 

The official release published on WHO’s official website stated that IVAG is “concerned that the primary priority use of available vaccines is not consistent with the goals outlined in the Strategy to Achieve Global COVID-19 Vaccination by Mid-2022 in October 2021.” It added, “The group also notes that it has validated the allocation of only 730 million of the estimated 8 billion doses of vaccine that have been administered globally, which is less than 10%.”

“The rapid emergence of the Omicron variant is a stark reminder of the ongoing threat posed by the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic and reinforces the critical need to achieve high levels of immunisation coverage in all countries, including in highly vulnerable populations, in a timely manner,” the statement added.

Other IVAG recommendations 

Apart from achieving 70% coverage with COVID-19 vaccines in all nations as a “global imperative”, IVAG has also called for “All countries to work with COVAX with considerable urgency to optimise the strategic use of the growing vaccine supply” and “All countries to have a steady, predictable supply of COVID-19 vaccines, which meet the unique needs of each country. Attention must be paid to addressing prohibitive absorptive challenges in countries that request support.”

(IMAGE: AP)