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S. Korea, ASEAN nations eye vaccine security in Indo-Pacific
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Vaccines are seen in a facility within SK Bioscience building in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, on Dec. 6. (JP/Niken Prathivi)
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s the world embraces life with COVID-19 entering the third year of the pandemic, countries in the Indo-Pacific seek commonalities for further collaboration to establish vaccine security as an anticipation for future plagues.
Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic started in early 2020, countries around the globe were forced to immediately seek solutions to the crisis amid knowledge and mobility limitations.
Throughout the pandemic, Southeast Asian countries and South Korea, with partners in the Indo-Pacific such as Australia and the United States, have garnered milestones in public health and vaccine cooperation as the region collectively responded to the disease challenges.
“Over the past three years […] we have learned the effectiveness of joint response and the importance of equitable access to vaccines and treatments,” Cho Hyun-dong, the Foreign Vice Minister of South Korea, told the 2nd Vaccine Cooperation Forum in the Indo-Pacific Region the country cohosted in Seoul on Wednesday.
“Regionally, ASEAN quickly harnessed its collective efforts and launched the ASEAN COVID-19 Response Fund and the Regional Reserve of Medical Supplies making a rapid regionwide-response possible,” he added.
Furthermore, on a global level, various new mechanisms, including Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator (ACT-A), COVAX Facility and the Financial Intermediary Fund -- better known as the Pandemic Fund -- were put into motion to bolster health-security capacities and improve coordination among countries.
“However, to achieve vaccine security, it is also crucial to invest in vaccine self-sufficiency by strengthening manufacturing capabilities across the world,” said Cho.
