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* Pfizer to supply doses on not-for-profit basis
* Deal set to help with COVAX early roll-out
* GAVI to give countries supply breakdown soon
(Adds detail, quotes throughout)
By Emma Farge and Matthias Blamont
GENEVA, Jan 22 (Reuters) - The World Health Organization
said on Friday it had reached an agreement with Pfizer/BioNTech
for 40 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine and should be able
to start delivering vaccines to poor and lower-middle income
countries next month under its COVAX programme.
The COVAX scheme, led by the WHO and the GAVI vaccine
alliance, signed deals for hundreds of millions of doses to
vaccinate people in poor and lower-middle income countries, but
vaccinations have yet to start. Pfizer's vaccine is so far the
only one that has WHO emergency approval.
"In this world we are as protected as our neighbour," said
Pfizer's CEO Albert Bourla, officially announcing the deal which
Reuters reported on Thursday.
Bourla said the 40 million doses, a fraction of the
company's total 2021 production estimate of 2 billion, would be
sold on a non-profit basis. He described it as an initial
agreement, and said more doses could be provided through the
COVAX programme in future.
The deal comes amid growing criticism of vaccine inequity
from both the WHO and others as wealthy countries inoculate
millions of people using shots procured through bilateral deals.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that
the new agreement with Pfizer should allow vaccinations to begin
in February for health workers, although details of supply
arrangements are still being finalised.
He said he hoped the agreement would also encourage other
countries to donate more of their Pfizer shots to support rapid
roll-out, like Norway has.
"The commitment of the (United States) to join COVAX,
together with this new agreement with Pfizer/BioNTech, mean that
we are closer to fulfilling the promise of COVAX," he said.
U.S. President Joe Biden's chief medical adviser Anthony
Fauci said on Thursday the United States intended to join the
facility. Biden's predecessor Donald Trump had halted funding to
the Geneva-based body and announced a withdrawal process.
The WHO said earlier this week it planned to deliver 135
million vaccines in the first quarter of 2021, without giving a
breakdown by supplier.
GAVI's CEO Seth Berkley said in the same briefing that
countries would receive dose estimates for the early part of
this year in about a week's time.
(Reporting by Matthias Blamont, Emma Farge and Peter Graff
Writing by Peter Graff
Editing by Louise Heavens and Sonya Hepinstall)
