Advance Purchases

Research Paper 154, 9 May 2022

COVID-19 Vaccines as Global Public Goods: between life and profit

By Katiuska King Mantilla and César Carranza Barona

In the context of a health emergency like the COVID-19 pandemic, the global availability of and access to vaccines are imperative. This research paper provides an analysis from the perspective of international political economy, of the financing of COVID-19 vaccines and of the market strategies adopted by some of the companies that developed them. It notes that the development of vaccines was supported by substantial public funding from countries that later received preferential access to those vaccines through advance purchases. Despite such public support, the vaccines were not deemed as public goods but remained under the control of their developers.

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