African businesses urged to contribute financially to COVID-19 vaccine rollout

By Sara Okuoro

African Union (AU) Chair Cyril Ramaphosa has called on African companies and foreign companies that do business in Africa to contribute financially to the continent’s efforts to roll out COVID-19 vaccines.

The South African President said MTN had offered to donate USD25 million to the vaccine programme of the AU’s disease control body to immunise healthcare workers.

He was speaking during an AU webinar on Wednesday. President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers his State of the Nation address at parliament in Cape Town, South Africa, February 13, 2020. [Reuters]

Earlier, Ramaphosa asked wealthy countries to share the COVID-19 vaccines with developing nations.

“The rich countries of the world went out and acquired large doses of vaccines. Some even acquired up to four times what their population needs. … We need those who have hoarded the vaccines to release the vaccines so that other countries can have them,” said President Ramaphosa during a virtual World Economic Forum meeting. 

 “We are all not safe if some countries are vaccinating their people and other countries are not vaccinating. We all must act together in combating the coronavirus,” he said.

President Ramaphosa said that a Covid-19 vaccine acquisition task team has secured a provisional 270-million doses for Africa through manufacturers. Another 600-million doses are expected from the Covax initiative.

Global COVID-19 cases have passed 100 million with more than two million deaths.