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· The Toronto-based Mastercard Foundation will spend US $1.3 billion over the next three years to acquire and deliver COVID-19 vaccines for more than 50 million people in Africa as first-of-its-kind effort to bolster Africa’s lagging vaccination campaign
· Mastercard Foundation has more than US$39 billion in assets. Recently, the World Health Organization said Africa was encountering an alarming mix of a spike in virus amidst inadequate vaccine shipments, mainly due to disruptions in vaccine exports from India
· Mastercard Foundation will purchase single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccines at the discounted rate negotiated by the African Union during its 220 million dose deal with the vaccine manufacturer.
The Toronto-based Mastercard Foundation will spend US $1.3 billion over the next three years to acquire and deliver COVID-19 vaccines for more than 50 million people in Africa as a first-of-its-kind effort to bolster Africa’s lagging vaccination campaign.
Mastercard Foundation has more than US$39 billion in assets. Recently, the World Health Organization said Africa was encountering an alarming mix of a spike in virus amidst inadequate vaccine shipments, mainly due to disruptions in vaccine exports from India.
The Mastercard Foundation will purchase single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccines at the discounted rate negotiated by the African Union during its 220 million dose deal with the vaccine manufacturer. The AU’s 55 member states can access that vaccine from July to September, with an option to purchase an additional 180 million doses through next year.
But there are disruptions in the supply of Johnson& Johnson vaccines in some countries. For instance, in South Africa the first batch of 1.1 million doses, which should have already been put to use, remain unused at a plant because of contamination concerns at a factory in Baltimore. Another batch of 900,000 doses was meant to be released in June ares till to be dispatched. The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, maintain that the supply issue and related disruptions will be resolved soon. Vaccines from the Mastercard will be made available from August in progressively larger quantities. .
