Vaccine manufacturers and suppliers of vaccine components are scaling up from zero to billions of doses in record time in an effort to produce enough doses to protect people, wherever they live, from SARS-CoV-2.
For manufacturers to meet their commitment to COVAX and people around the globe, it is essential to anticipate, understand and establish open dialogue to address emerging supply and manufacturing challenges going forward, and to do so in a manner that does not jeopardize other critical health needs.
Due to the scale of the task and the complexity associated with vaccine manufacturing, bottlenecks are inevitable, as are potential shortages and delays of materials and equipment. Hoarding and actions that inhibit free flow of materials across borders, including export controls exacerbate the problem and result in bottlenecks throughout the supply chain.
Time is of the essence in understanding and tackling these challenges. For this reason, COVAX, BIO, DVCMN and IFPMA are co-sponsoring a Global C19 Vaccine Supply Chain & Manufacturing Summit convened by Chatham House, with the aim to: Provide a platform to explore a range of solutions to address bottlenecks; Lead to a series of recommendations, ideally commitments, on the priority areas for monitoring and action.