The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on Thursday announced that it will commit an additional $250 million to support the development of low-cost COVID-19 vaccines and treatment worldwide.
The latest contribution from the Gates Foundation is the largest till date, with $70 million funding added in November. With this contribution, the foundation’s total funding in response to the Covid-19 pandemic reaches to $1.75 billion. The foundation’s commitment will also support the delivery of tests, treatments and vaccines low and middle-income countries.
Melinda Gates, Co-Chair of the Gates Foundation said that everyone everywhere deserves to be benefited from the science developed in 2020. “We are confident that the world will get better in 2021, but whether it gets better for everyone depends on the actions of the world’s leaders and their commitment to deliver tests, treatments, and vaccines to the people who need them,” she said.
On Tuesday, Britain became the first country to roll out COVID-19 vaccine with a 90 year-old woman to receive the first Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine shot. Canada has also the approved the same Pfizer vaccine on Wednesday, while the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said the vaccine meet the expectations for emergency use authorised ahead of Thursday meeting of outside experts, discussing whether to recommend it or not.