The distribution dilemma
Developing a vaccine is only half of the solution; getting as many people as possible vaccinated against COVID-19 is the next challenge governments and vaccine manufacturers need to overcome. Here are a few roadblocks standing in the way of vaccine distribution.
Temperature: Pfizer-BioNTech’s candidate requires a frosty -70°C, while Moderna’s can be stored at -20°C. Vaccines typically need cold, sub-zero temperatures during storage, posing a problem in parts of the world that lack the necessary infrastructure. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), up to 50 percent of vaccines are wasted each year due to inadequate temperature control in supply chains.
Vaccine nationalism: Richer nations are well-equipped to buy vaccines in advance, giving them first access and leaving poorer nations in the dust. It has certainly happened before—in 2007, Indonesia was unable to purchase the H5N1 influenza vaccine despite being one of the worst-affected nations at the time.
Production capacity: The global production capacity of vaccines is estimated to be at around six billion doses per year. As some COVID-19 vaccines involve a two-dose regimen, current vaccine production systems are inadequately prepared to ramp up capacity.
