With this strategy, the Commission will support efforts to accelerate the development and availability of safe and effective vaccines in a timeframe between 12 and 18 months, if not earlier. Delivering on this complex undertaking requires running clinical trials in parallel with investing in production capacity to be able to produce millions, or even billions, of doses of a successful vaccine.

The strategy has the following objectives:

• Ensuring the quality, safety and efficacy of vaccines.
• Securing swift access to vaccines for Member States and their populations while leading the global solidarity effort.
• Ensuring equitable access to an affordable vaccine as early as possible.

The EU strategy rests on two pillars:

• Securing the production of vaccines in the EU and sufficient supplies for its Member States through Advance Purchase Agreements with vaccine producers via the Emergency Support Instrument. Additional financing and other forms of support can be made available on top of such agreements.
• Adapting the EU's regulatory framework to the current urgency and making use of existing regulatory flexibility to accelerate the development, authorisation and availability of vaccines while maintaining the standards for vaccine quality, safety and efficacy.

The EU is contributing to the global effort for universal testing, treatment and vaccination by mobilising resources through international pledging and by joining forces with countries and global health organisations through the Access To Covid-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator collaborative framework. The Global Coronavirus Response pledging campaign raised €9.8 billion by the end of May 2020. A second step is underway in partnership with Global Citizen and other governmental and non-governmental partners, culminating in a global pledging summit on 27 June.

For more information:

EC - press release

Communication on the EU Strategy for COVID-19 vaccines

Coronavirus Vaccines Strategy Factsheet

Original source: https://era.gv.at/object/news/5373