• As part of a pledge to share at least 3.65 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines with lower-income economies through COVAX, Finland’s donation has begun with a first delivery of 98,400 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to Côte d’Ivoire

  • Mr Ville Skinnari, Finnish Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade: “Finland is strongly committed to vaccine solidarity. Equitable access to vaccines is key to overcoming the pandemic. COVAX has proved to be a unique mechanism for scaling up global distribution. I am pleased that the first Finnish doses are delivered to the African continent, to Côte d’Ivoire.”

  • Ms. Marie-Ange Saraka-Yao, Gavi Managing Director for Resource Mobilisation, Private Sector Partnerships and Innovative Finance: “Finland is an increasingly strong advocate for global public health and vaccination, pledging EUR 10 million in funding to the Gavi COVAX Advance Market Commitment (Gavi COVAX AMC) and 3.65 million doses. I am thrilled to see the first Finnish doses reach Côte d’Ivoire today.”

Geneva, 4 November 2021 – Finnish-donated doses touched down in Abidjan today, with 98,400 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine reaching Côte d’Ivoire as the first shipment of a dose donation pledge of 3.65 million doses in total.

Finland’s contribution comes on top of a EUR 10 million funding pledge to the Gavi COVAX Advance Market Commitment (Gavi COVAX AMC), allowing COVAX to procure more doses for people who need them most. Finland’s donation is part of a broader Team Europe commitment to equitable access, and Nordic solidarity with counterparts Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden additionally donating doses and funding to COVAX.

These doses will serve to vaccinate more people in the West African country, which was one of the first to receive doses from COVAX, on 26 February 2021. Côte d’Ivoire has now received a total of 5,304,720 doses from COVAX.

“Finland is strongly committed to vaccine solidarity,” said Ville Skinnari, Finnish Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade. “Equitable access to vaccines is key to overcoming the pandemic. COVAX has proved to be a unique mechanism for scaling up global distribution. I am pleased that the first Finnish doses are delivered to the African continent, to Côte d’Ivoire.”

“Finland is an increasingly strong advocate for global public health and vaccination, pledging EUR 10 million in funding to the Gavi COVAX Advance Market Commitment (Gavi COVAX AMC) and 3.65 million doses,” added Ms. Marie-Ange Saraka-Yao, Gavi Managing Director for Resource Mobilisation, Private Sector Partnerships and Innovative Finance. “I am thrilled to see the first Finnish doses reach Côte d’Ivoire today.”Donating through COVAX helps to increase vaccine coverage, ensures that no dose goes to waste, and helps to bring an end to the acute phase of the pandemic. The donation of doses via COVAX is enabled via tripartite agreements between Gavi, manufacturers, and donating countries. The design and operationalization of the COVAX dose sharing mechanism is being supported by a contribution of CAD 5 million from Canada.

Over 1.3 billion doses have already been pledged to COVAX by a number of countries in response to short-term supply challenges and the rise of new variants. Working with donor governments to operationalise growing numbers of dose-sharing pledges, COVAX expects to see more deliveries of donated doses in the weeks and months to come.

MEDIA CONTACTS

Evan O’Connell
+41 79 682 18 95
eoconnell@gavi.org

Iryna Mazur
+41 79 429 3671
imazur@gavi.org

Meg Sharafudeen
+41 79 711 55 54
msharafudeen@gavi.org

Laura Shevlin
+ 41 79 529 92 87
lshevlin@gavi.org

Cirũ Kariũki
+41 79 913 94 41
ckariuki@gavi.org

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