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WHO seeks to fill COVID-19 vaccine gap left by India suspending exports

Kenya to kick off coronavirus vaccination campaign with COVAX shots in Nairobi
FILE PHOTO: A health worker holds vials of the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine under the COVAX scheme against coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at the Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya March 5, 2021. REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi

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GENEVA: The World Health Organization is seeking to fill the gap left in the COVAX dose-sharing programme by India suspending exports of AstraZeneca doses and is in talks with donors including the United States, senior WHO officials said on Monday.

"In the next few months we do not expect Serum (Institute of India) to be able to supply the kind of (doses) originally predicted," WHO chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan told a news conference.

Bruce Aylward, a WHO senior adviser, said there was no firm date for resumption of Indian vaccine exports amid its COVID-19 crisis.

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Source: Reuters/ec