COVAX, or COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access, recently released a statement regarding the available supplies of the COVID-19 vaccine worldwide. According to the COVAX supply forecast, there are still numerous challenges facing the global supply of vaccines.

COVAX supply forecast: Vaccine supply still a big concern

About 12 months ago, various organizations banded together to establish COVAX. COVAX’s goal was to ensure that people in low-income countries can have access to COVID-19 vaccines that are readily available in higher-income countries. And indeed, COVAX has successful in providing vaccines to countries who need it most, such as the Philippines.

However, they revealed in their recent statement that they still face a number of hurdles with regard to access to vaccines. In particular, they mentioned that in poorer countries, only 20% of the population has been fully vaccinated. In contrast, richer countries have fully vaccinated about 80% of their population¹. According to them, the current state of vaccination is “unacceptable.”

They add that some of the challenges they’ve experienced include delays in delivery, export bans, as well as the richer countries buying up most of the vaccine supply. In addition, despite various countries and organizations pledging vaccines, the short-term supply still remains a big concern².

Because of this, they encourage some of the richer nations who have had achieved high coverage to give up their place in manufacturer queues to lower-income nations. They’ve also requested these countries to donate some of their supply to other nations whose vaccine coverage is still not enough.

What does this mean for the Philippines?

According to the government and the COVAX supply forecast, they have secured a steady supply of vaccines for the next 6 months. This includes vaccines purchased from manufacturers, donated by other countries, and purchased through the COVAX initiative³.

As of July 21, the government reported that around 28 million out of 164 million doses have already been delivered. While this is promising news, the rise in the number of cases and slow rollout of the vaccine are constant problems.

One study⁴ looked at the current state of vaccination in the country and found that delays in the vaccine and lack of supply are significant problems. They found that in order to deal with vaccine supply problems, community quarantines and contact tracing are extremely important measures.

Aside from this, they recommend that the government should try to vaccinate at least 440,000 persons daily. Based on their findings, this should help control the spread of COVID-19 in the country.

We need to do our part in slowing down the pandemic

One thing we have to remember is that there are things that we can do to combat COVID-19. By doing our own part and considering the COVAX supply forecast, we can help slow down the spread of the virus until everyone can be fully vaccinated. Here are some things to remember:

• As much as possible, try to stay at home. This can help you avoid being infected by others. If you do need to go out, only do so if it’s really necessary.
• Whenever you need to go out, be sure to wear a face mask, and keep your distance from others. It’s also a good idea to avoid crowded places if you can, especially if it’s indoors.
• Always keep your hands clean and avoid touching your face. Be sure to sanitize your hands if you touch any surfaces in order to avoid infection.
• If you feel that you might have been infected, be sure to isolate yourself from others. This helps prevent you from potentially infecting others.
• As soon as the opportunity comes, be sure to get yourself vaccinated. This is the best way of stopping the infection, so it’s very important that you get vaccinated as soon as possible.

Learn more about Coronavirus here.