Global Access and Commitment to Public Health: AstraZeneca and Oxford University's Perspective on Covid-19 Vaccine

Covid-19 vaccine rollouts across the world demonstrate huge global health inequalities. Many countries in the global south are struggling to access one of the vaccines currently available around the world. That's despite a global facility called COVAX, set up under the auspices of the world health organisation, tasked with helping low and middle income countries access vaccines. While rich countries have accumulated extensive supply deals some countries may have to wait until 2022 or later before supplies are widely available. We hear from Mesfin Teklu Tessema, head of the Health Unit at the International Rescue Committee and Fatima Hussein, a human rights lawyer and founder of the Health Justice Initiative in South Africa. Plus Sir Mene Pangalos. the executive vice president of biopharmaceutical R&D at AstraZeneca which developed its Covid-19 vaccine in conjunction with oxford university and has made it available on a not-for-profit basis.

(Photo: an Israeli healthcare worker prepares a dose of the covid-19 vaccine. Credit: Getty Images.)