China will strive to provide 2 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses to the world throughout this year
and offer $100 million dollars to COVAX to promote vaccine provision in developing countries,
Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Aug. 5 in a written message to the first meeting of the
international forum on COVID-19 vaccine cooperation.
This marked an important practice for China to fulfill its promise of making COVID-19 vaccines a
global public good, signifying the country’s firm determination to keep supporting global anti-
pandemic cooperation and build a global community of health for all.
To set up an international forum on vaccine cooperation for vaccine-developing and producing
countries, companies and other stakeholders to explore ways of promoting fair and equitable
distribution of vaccines around the world was one of the five measures announced by President Xi
to support global solidarity against COVID-19 at the Global Health Summit this May.
The first session of the forum was attended by premiers, foreign ministers, health ministers or
senior representatives from over 20 countries, heads of UN and the WHO, as well as
representatives from 29 vaccine manufacturers in China and abroad, which fully indicated the
support for China’s proposals from the parties concerned.
Foreign representatives to the session gave a high evaluation on China’s leading role in
international anti-pandemic cooperation, especially vaccine cooperation, and expressed their
gratitude to the country for fulfilling its promise of making COVID-19 vaccines a global public
good, providing vaccines for the world, especially the developing countries, and its outstanding
contribution to promoting the accessibility and affordability of vaccines in developing countries.
With concrete actions, China is striving to tackle distribution deficit, making new steps toward
global equity and accessibility of vaccine distribution.
Vaccines are an important weapon for the mankind to defeat the virus. In May the last year, China
took the lead to announce that COVID-19 vaccine development and deployment in China, when
available, will be made a global public good.
Such a promise is a Chines contribution to improving the accessibility and affordability of
COVID-19 vaccines in developing countries. Keeping its word, China has donated and is donating
COVID-19 vaccines to over 100 countries, and is exporting vaccines to more than 60 countries.
These vaccines add up to 770 million doses, the highest in the world. This June, China, together
with 28 countries, jointly started the Initiative for Belt and Road Partnership on COVID-19
Vaccines Cooperation to enhance collaboration on vaccine aid, export and joint production. These
Chinese actions have vividly explained the vision of building a community with a shared future
for mankind and demonstrated China’s major country responsibility.
With concrete actions, China striving to tackle production deficit, injecting new impetus to the
solidarity and cooperation among developing countries.
The pandemic is a major test that examines each country’s governance capability, as well as the
world’s health governance system. To win the battle against the virus, which concerns the future
and destiny of mankind, the world must rely on solidarity and cooperation, and help developing
countries with vulnerable public health systems improve their capability in fighting the virus.
As a developing country, China is not only offering vaccine aid to other developing countries, but
also helping them develop their own vaccine production capability to enhance their competence in
coping with public health challenges. Under China’s assistance, the UAE, Egypt, Indonesia and
Brazil became the first countries capable of producing COVID-19 vaccines in their respective
regions, and Malaysia, Turkey, Pakistan and Mexico also kicked off vaccine production
cooperation with China, with total production capacity exceeding 200 million doses.
With concrete actions, China is striving to safeguard international equity and justice, making new
contributions to an early win of the mankind over the pandemic.
The COVID-19 pandemic is still ravaging the world, and maximum efforts must be taken to
protect the lives and health of all people on the planet. When advancing international vaccine
cooperation, China never seeks geopolitical goals, aims at economic benefits, or attaches political
strings. The only aim of China is to make the vaccines a global public good that serves all the
people in the world.
Compared with the vaccine nationalism in some countries, China has always demonstrated a
generous and unselfish spirit of international cooperation, said Munir Akram, president of UN
Economic and Social Council and Pakistan’s UN ambassador.
Virtue is not left to stand alone. China’s solemn promise and active practice demonstrated its
responsibility for the lives and health of the Chinese people, and the cause of global public health.
The international cooperation on pandemic fight proves that to build a global community of health
for all is a common aspiration of the people around the world. It conforms to the trend of history,
and remains the right approach for mankind to cope with common challenges and build a better
world.
The sunshine of cooperation will finally dispel dark cloud of the pandemic. China will keep
advancing international anti-pandemic cooperation, and work with all parties relevant to build a
magnificent power against the virus.
