France will send 10 million doses of the AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines to Africa via the African Union throughout the next three months, according to a statement by the Elysée.
The vaccines will be allocated and distributed through the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust (Avat) and the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access initiative (COVACX) in order to allow Africa to catch up to developed countries in terms of vaccination against the coronavirus.
“The pandemic can only be overcome through intense cooperation between multilateral, regional and national actors,” said President Emmanuel Macron, quoted in a statement. “I want us to act together by harnessing the expertise and political legitimacy of African leaders and building on our strong partnership with the African Union,” he added.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa welcomed France’s donation, describing it as a “strong and welcome gesture of human solidarity and political cooperation at a time when the world needs it most.”
In May, during a meeting with Macron concerning global vaccine inequity, Ramaphosa denounced a “vaccine apartheid” stating that some countries receive an “unlimited” number of vaccines while a very small number of the African population is protected.
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