World’s Largest Vaccine Factory Says “Ordered” to Prioritize India over International Orders

The world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, Instituto Serum India, called on countries waiting to deliver COVID-19 vaccines to be “patient” following the order to prioritize India’s “huge needs”.

“Dear countries and governments, while waiting for the offer from #COVISHIELD, I humbly ask you to be patient,” Adar Poonawalla, president of the Serum Institute of India (SII) tweeted on Sunday.

The entity “has been tasked with prioritizing India’s enormous needs and balancing the needs of the rest of the world.. One does what one canHe added in the statement.

Poonawalla did not say where the order to prioritize India came from or whether the instructions were new.

Many low- and middle-income countries depend on the AstraZeneca vaccine, named COVISHIELD by the Indian company. But demand is growing, even in Western countries like Canada, where Poonawalla has promised to deliver this formula next month.

India’s goal is to vaccinate 300 million people by July, among its 1.35 billion inhabitants, but so far it has only administered 11 million doses. However, the lack of vaccine candidates in India appears to be more of the problem than the supply. The government of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been criticized for the slow take-off of its vaccination campaign, but health authorities are preparing to significantly increase the number of vaccinations in the coming weeks. With more than 10.9 million confirmed infections, India is the second country in the world with the highest number of COVID-19 cases, behind only the United States.

The Serum Institute produces hundreds of millions of AstraZeneca vaccines at its huge factory in Pune, western India. Many countries, especially those with the least resources, rely heavily on Indian companies for access to vaccines. Millions of doses have been shipped overseas.

In addition, Serum plans to deliver 200 million doses to the Covax program, a collaborative initiative targeting the poorest countries led by the World Health Organization (WHO).

(With information from AFP and Reuters)

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