The J&J vaccine was supposed to be one of Africa's most important weapons against Covid. Instead, at least 32 million doses have been shipped out of South Africa to the E.U. as millions of Africans suffer and die.
"This is further proof that the world cannot trust a handful of pharmaceutical companies to fairly allocate vaccines across the world. Pharma executives seem all too happy to write off African deaths to line their own pockets." explained Mohga Kamal-Yanni of the People's Vaccine Alliance. "While South Africa was experiencing one of the worst humanitarian crises to arise from Covid-19, J&J diverted desperately needed vaccines to wealthy countries."
A confidential contract required South Africa to waive its right to impose export restrictions on vaccine doses. Johnson & Johnson had always planned for some vaccines produced by Aspen to leave Africa, but it has never disclosed how many doses it was actually exporting.
Popo Maja, a spokesperson for the South African health ministry pointed out that "The government was not given any choice. Sign contract or no vaccine."
Fatima Hassan, director of the South Africa-based Health Justice Initiative, said the arrangement that J&J reportedly forced on South Africa is "the sickening result of the free market in a pandemic—while Africa waits for supplies and gets a drip-feed, more vaccine stock is diverted to Europe."
South Africa is still waiting to receive the overwhelming majority of the 31 million vaccine doses it ordered from Johnson & Johnson.
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