Sat 10 October 2020:
China has joined the global alliance to produce a vaccine to treat COVID-19, the country’s Foreign Ministry said on Friday.
The COVAX pledge to get vaccines to poorer nations as soon as they are developed aims to head off fears rich countries will limit distribution of game-changing medicines made by their pharmaceutical companies.
The deal gives China, the country where the virus first emerged, a prominent role in the global effort to share vaccines with less-developed countries.
China joined COVAX to “honour its commitment to turn COVID-19 vaccines into a global public good,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Friday of the October 8 agreement.
She gave no details on how much money China would commit to the deal, which has a fundraising goal of $2 billion and aims to provide 92 low and middle-income countries with a future vaccine.
Chinese vaccines “will be provided to developing countries as a priority”, Hua said, adding Beijing hopes “more capable countries will also join and support COVAX”.
China is racing to find a vaccine, with Beijing making bold predictions on its rollout before the end of the year.
Hundreds of thousands of Chinese soldiers, emergency staff and overseas workers have already been injected with vaccines — although the leading contenders are yet to complete clinical trials.
Tens of millions of people returned to work on Friday after a long “Golden Week” domestic holiday seen as a test of consumer confidence, cutting a stark contrast to many Western nations afflicted by rolling lockdowns and travel restrictions.
The COVID-19 infection, first reported in the Chinese city of Wuhan last December, affected over 36 million people worldwide. Over 1 million patients have died due to the infection so far after it spread to 188 countries, regions, and territories.
