
- Initial Commitment for Delivery of 20 Million Doses to Countries in Need across Four Continents
- Key support for equitable vaccine distribution through COVAX, Gavi, the vaccine alliance and CARE’s Fast + Fair initiative
- Working with countries across Africa, Asia, Europe and South America to accelerate global vaccination efforts
- Cold chain, additional freezer capacity is yet another element of UPS Healthcare’s continued expansion of worldwide capabilities
TAIPEI- UPS (NYSE: UPS), The UPS Foundation and UPS Healthcare are moving quickly to support an equitable delivery program and sustainable global supply chain of COVID-19 vaccines. UPS, in collaboration with COVAX, Gavi, the vaccine alliance and CARE will initially facilitate the delivery of 20 million doses for countries that have not had sufficient access to vaccines, including top priority groups like healthcare workers. In Asia Pacific, this includes markets like Indonesia and Myanmar.
“We
believe that we have the ability – and responsibility – to facilitate and
accelerate equitable COVID-19 vaccine delivery around the world,” said Scott
Price, President UPS International. “UPS continues to build and inspire action
across a network of global public-private partnerships that will ensure
vaccines move more efficiently and equitably. Our work focuses on countries
with limited resources and constrained supply chains and infrastructures. The
goal is simple and our commitment is unwavering – moving our world forward by
delivering what matters.”
The latest global vaccination
rate is approximately six million doses per day.
According to several studies, at that rate it would take an estimated 5.4 years
to cover 75 percent of the global population with a two-dose vaccine. The role
of public-private partnerships is a vital component in building global
solutions for global challenges, such as the pandemic, and the needed access to
vaccines to fight it.
Building Partnerships
Global success hinges upon bringing
together and mobilizing the right partnerships. Helping to establish and fuel
these efforts, UPS Healthcare and The UPS Foundation will:
Provide transportation solutions that
leverage UPS cold-chain technology
Dedicate ultra-low temperature freezer
donations necessary to maintain vaccine dose viability at the correct
temperature in varying environments
Commit UPS loaned executives to provide
logistics expertise and coordination with vaccine manufacturers and NGO
partners to manage and streamline deliveries
This initial level of support from The UPS Foundation is more than $3 million in
contributions to our global partners. This capacity building effort is made up
of a $2 million grant directed to Gavi who is matching the grant to bring it to
$4 million. With the addition of $1 million of in-kind support, The UPS Foundation
is providing transportation, donating cold-chain capacity in the form of
freezers and lending technical expertise to partners in need.
This comprehensive level of support
amounts to more than $5 million in support of equitable vaccine distribution
and health systems strengthening efforts across Gavi-supported countries
“With
supply limited for the foreseeable future, COVID-19 vaccines are arguably the
world’s most precious commodity this year,” said Dr. Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi.
“With every dose being so important, it is critical to ensure that our partner
countries have the necessary support and tools to deliver vaccines effectively
and efficiently to those who need them. This new support builds on the
long-standing partnership between Gavi and the UPS Foundation, which is focused
on ensuring that every child in Gavi-supported countries receives lifesaving
vaccines.”
The UPS Foundation is also providing
support for CARE’s Fast + Fair initiative, which is focused on equitable
distribution of COVID-19 vaccine to at-risk groups including healthcare
workers, caregivers and refugees in 11 initial countries including Bangladesh,
Benin, Democratic Republic of Congo, India, the Philippines, and South Sudan.
“We are interdependent as a global
community -- no one is safe until everyone is safe”, said Nikki Clifton,
President of The UPS Foundation. “Now is the time to link our arms around the
world. Now is the time to deliver vaccines – and hope – to everyone, regardless
of wealth or location.”
Collectively, these public-private
efforts, such as the one in Ghana, are designed to ensure COVID-19 vaccines begin flowing
quickly to countries in dire need. Through UPS and partner support, more than 10
million people in countries across Africa, Asia, Europe and South America will
receive the COVID-19 vaccine in the first wave of vaccine distribution.