PremiumThe Centre has got a lot of flak for having exported vaccines starting January. India has now stopped exports, but Serum Institute of India (SII) has said it hopes to resume them by the year-end. Mint explains why India cannot halt vaccine exports indefinitely.
The Centre has got a lot of flak for having exported vaccines starting January. India has now stopped exports, but Serum Institute of India (SII) has said it hopes to resume them by the year-end. Mint explains why India cannot halt vaccine exports indefinitely.
Why did India export covid vaccines?
Vaccines are complex things to make. It’s not easy to reverse engineer, and the supply chain involves many countries, so if one shuts down, the impact is felt on the entire chain. The covid-19 vaccines manufactured or developed in India need an estimated 360 ingredients sourced from abroad. If India insists on ingredients and technology, the finished product too has to be shared. India says it is not exporting vaccines now, because when cases were low, Indian vaccines were supplied to the world, but that scenario has changed under the fierce second wave of infections.
What is India’s place in global supply chain?
Vaccine technology, patents, knowhow and ingredients are made available to India because it can make quality vaccines on the cheap for developing nations. Patents for vaccines are shared and ingredient supply chains are opened to Indian vaccine manufacturers specifically on this understanding and involving contractual and moral obligations. All covid-19 vaccines being made or planned to be made in India—including Covishield, Covaxin and Sputnik V, as well as its own vaccines—are dependent on international, largely US-based, ingredient supply chains.
Where are the ingredients coming from?
India sources vaccine ingredients from the US, Germany, Japan, Poland, Switzerland, Sweden, Singapore, Denmark, Netherlands and France. Its export destinations include Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Kenya and Brazil among others. SII last week said it hoped to resume exports of covishield by the year end.
What are these ingredients?
Everything from mixing bags to waste bags, cryogenic sterile tubes to single-use buffer bags, hydrochloric acid, acetone, sodium citrate, benzonase and antifoam. India sources 214 items from the US, more than 100 from Germany, 14 from the Netherlands, eight from Sweden, four each from Singapore and Poland, two from Japan and one each from France and Switzerland. In the past weeks, India has been focusing on ensuring a smooth flow of ingredients, prioritising supplies to Indian vaccine manufacturers.
Will a patent waiver at the WTO help?
The call by India and South Africa for putting vaccine patents on hold is seen as a crucial but only the first step in the process of sharing vaccine technology. The US will need to take steps to temporarily suspend provisions of its intell-ectual property rights legislation. That has to be followed by an executive order. The third stage is for firms to prioritize customers in India. If Bharat Biotech shares its Covaxin formula with other firms in India, the new firms will need to source the ingredients from the international supply chain.
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