New kinds of loans and bonds could fill $28 bln COVID funding gap: WHO (updated)
15/12/2020 11:56
(Adds details, background)
By Stephanie Nebehay and Emma Farge
GENEVA, Dec 15 (Reuters) - The World Health Organization is
looking at new financial instruments to help to fill a $28
billion funding shortfall for tools to fight COVID-19, a senior
official said on Tuesday.
The WHO and GAVI vaccine alliance aim to provide poor and
middle-income countries with diagnostic tests, drugs and
vaccines through a fund known as the Access to COVID-19 Tools
(ACT) Accelerator, which was set up last April.
Bruce Aylward, a senior WHO adviser and its ACT coordinator,
said that new financing mechanisms - including concessional
loans and catastrophe bonds - were discussed at a meeting of the
ACT facilitation council on Monday, co-chaired by Norway and
South Africa.
"Right now financing is what stands between us and getting
out of this pandemic as rapidly as possible," he told a U.N.
briefing in Geneva.
"It's a real challenge in today's fiscal environment despite
the fact that this is the best deal in town," Aylward said,
referring to the ACT Accelerator facility. "This will pay itself
off in 36 hours once we get trade and travel moving again."
Aylward said that the WHO and partners were in talks with
Pfizer PFE.N to include its COVID-19 vaccine as part of an
early global roll out.
He said that he saw a "strong commitment" on the part of
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla to set prices at levels appropriate to
poorer populations. Aylward expected some news on more
manufacturers joining the list of providers to the COVAX vaccine
facility in coming weeks, he said.
Canada has pledged to spend C$485 million ($380 million) to
support COVID-19 tests, treatments and vaccines in low- and
middle-income countries, including antibody treatments,
International Aid Minister Karina Gould said on Monday.
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(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay and Emma Farge. Editing by Jane
Merriman)
((emma.farge@thomsonreuters.com;))