COVID-19 vaccine development is more global than you might think

Cuba has two late-stage vaccine trials, and four candidates in total. It aims to use them to immunize its own population while supplying other countries like Suriname, Ghana, and Venezuela.

Cuba is classified as a “small island developing state,” so some might be surprised to learn that it has a distinguished healthcare history and substantial biotech sector. In truth, the vaccines that are now key to regaining a sense of normalcy are rife with similar incongruities. They were supposed to require years of development, for example, yet some were authorized less than 11 months after the WHO declared COVID-19 a global health emergency.

They're also expected to net $40 billion in sales for drugmakers this year, yet many countries haven’t yet been able to administer a single dose.

Earlier this week the director-general of the WHO cited a “grotesque” inequity between rich and poor countries in terms of vaccine availability. “As long as the virus continues to circulate anywhere, people will continue to die,” he said.

Vaccine development in places like Cuba could help address this situation.

Cuba recently delivered 100,000 doses of its “Soberana 02” vaccine to Iran as part of a trial. The two countries have each been targeted with sanctions that boost the need for self-sufficiency; Iran started human trials of its third domestically-developed COVID-19 vaccine earlier this month.

Viet Nam’s first homegrown vaccine, “Nano Covax,” is in its second phase of human trials, Turkey began second-phase trials of its domestic vaccine earlier this month, and Kazakhstan plans to start using its own domestic vaccine, “QazCovid.”

In Thailand, researchers aim to begin human trials soon on a locally-developed vaccine that could protect millions of people there and in other Asian countries.

North Korea announced last July it was testing a domestic COVID-19 vaccine candidate, though that hasn’t been independently verified.

Around the world, countries rich and poor have struggled to roll out vaccination widely (some argue the only truly humanitarian response would be to make the intellectual property behind vaccines freely available).

Still, good news may be in store as candidates like India’s “ZYCoV-D” and Germany’s “CureVac” are expected to hit the market relatively soon.

Some of the vaccine candidates poised for use don't require a shot in the arm. India-based Bharat Biotech recently began testing a version delivered via a nasal spray, for example.

Other candidates have been developed using a plant species related to tobacco. Canada-based Medicago’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate, which deploys imitation viruses created in the leaves of this relative, recently entered into a phase three study.

All of these developments could contribute to a next generation of vaccines capable of tackling dangerous variants – and at a lower cost than what’s so far been possible.

For more context, here are links to further reading from the World Economic Forum’s Strategic Intelligence platform:

On the Strategic Intelligence platform, you can find feeds of expert analysis related to Vaccination, Geo-economics and hundreds of additional topics. You’ll need to register to view.