More than 336,000 additional doses of the safe and effective Johnson&Johnson COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Madagascar on March 20 through the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust (AVAT) mechanism, the African Union’s vaccine procurement and distribution effort. Purchased and donated by the U.S. government, these vaccines are part of the Biden Administration’s global effort to rapidly increase vaccine coverage. This effort now marks a major milestone: 500 million vaccine doses shared by the United States with the world, including Madagascar.
“Nearly three years into the COVID-19 pandemic, global suffering continues despite heroic efforts by our healthcare workers, private citizens, institutions, organizations, countries, and economies. Throughout, it has remained a fact that no one country acting alone can stop the virus. As President Biden has made clear since the September 2021 Global COVID-19 Summit, vaccinating the world, saving lives now, and building back better require concerted global action. Together, the international community can end the acute phase of the pandemic,” said U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in a February 14, 2022 statement.
In addition to the more than 500 million COVID-19 vaccine doses that the United States has shared globally, it has also contributed $4 billion to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, in support of COVAX, the global initiative to equitably distribute safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines worldwide. The United States remains the largest donor of COVID-19 vaccines to Madagascar, having donated more than 2.1 million doses including more than 1.3 million Johnson&Johnson doses and more than 800,000 Pfizer doses since July 2021.
“With these new doses, in addition to those donated previously by the United States, we can help ensure that Malagasy people from all walks of life and in every part of the country can have reliable, free, and equitable access to vaccines,” said U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Amy J. Hyatt.
The U.S. government is working alongside the Government of Madagascar like “mpirahalahy mianala” to ensure that communities across the nation have the resources they need to make vaccines available broadly. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) supports Madagascar’s COVID-19 response by assisting with disease surveillance, prevention and control of the disease, supply chain management, public awareness, and vaccinations through the USAID ACCESS and IMPACT programs.
People can get vaccinated against COVID-19 at hundreds of locations across the country including Centres de Santé de Base (CSBs), hospitals, dedicated vaccinodromes, and mobile vaccine clinics. For information about where to get vaccinated, visit https://vaksiny.gov.mg/.
The U.S. government will continue to work closely with the Government of Madagascar and governments around the world to protect public health and build a world that is safer and more secure against the threat of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases.