ADB provides $20.3 million grant for vaccine deployment

MANILA, Philippines — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide $20.3 million in technical assistance grants to help developing member-countries prepare for the deployment of vaccines against COVID-19.

The funds will support the assessment of vaccine-related health systems, as well as the development of country plans to access, distribute, and monitor the effectivity of vaccines.

Specifically, countries can strengthen the assessments needed for the establishment of logistics, cold chain, infection control mechanism, supply and skills of health workers, risk communications, and real-time data capturing and monitoring.

The funds will also support the use of innovative cold chain and vaccine tracking technologies.

Out of the total allocation, $20 million will come from ADB’s Technical Assistance Special Fund (TASF), while $300,000 will come from the High-Level Technology Fund financed by the Japanese government.

“Asia and the Pacific has largely done well to limit the spread of COVID-19. Ensuring access to a safe, effective, and equitable vaccine is the next frontier in the fight against this virus,” said Woochong Um, director general of ADB’s Sustainable Development and Climate Change department.

“With these additional grant resources, ADB can immediately support our developing members to undertake urgent actions, including vaccine system assessments and vaccine deployment strategies to ensure vaccines are delivered efficiently and fairly.”

ADB will implement the technical assistance with its partners UNICEF and the World Health Organization, in coordination with COVAX, Gavi, the World Bank and bilateral agencies.

In April, the multilateral bank approved a $20 billion assistance package to support the pandemic responses of its developing member- countries.

In response to progress in vaccine development, the Philippine government has put together a so-called vaccine cluster headed by Secretary Carlito Galvez that would be in charge of the purchase, negotiation, production and distribution of vaccines.

Galvez had said that under a best-case scenario, vaccines can be distributed in the Philippines from May to July next year.