Covax urges nations to recognise WHO-approved jabs for travel

Nine European nations include Covishield vaccine on their travel list

The global initiative for equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccines, COVAX on Thursday urged all nations to recognise all people who have received Covid-19 jabs approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as ‘fully vaccinated’, while making travel-related decisions across various countries. As international pressure mounts on the EU member countries, as many as nine countries have now included India made AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine Covishield in their list of ‘Green Pass’ vaccines.

India too had opened diplomatic dialogues with the European Union (EU) after the EU Digital Covid Certificate framework recognised the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine, but did not mention Covishield as the latter did not have an emergency-use authorisation (EUA) from the European Medicine Agency (EMA).

In a strongly-worded message, Covax, led by the WHO, Gavi, UNICEF and CEPI, said that any measure that only allows people protected by a subset of WHO-approved vaccines to benefit from the re-opening of travel into and within that region will further widen the global vaccine divide. It will also exacerbate the inequities that are being seen in the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines.

“As travel and other possibilities begin to open up in some parts of the world, COVAX urges all regional, national and local government authorities to recognise as fully vaccinated all people who have received Covid-19 vaccines that have been deemed safe and effective by the World Health Organization and/or the 11 Stringent Regulatory Authorities (SRAs) approved for COVID-19 vaccines, when making decisions on who is able to travel or attend events,” an official statement said.

COVAX was built on the principle of equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines to protect the health of people all across the globe. It has been working with governments and vaccine manufacturers across the globe.

Meanwhile, as many as nine European nations--Slovenia, Greece, Austria, Estonia, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Spain and Switzerland--will allow Indian travellers who have taken Serum Institute of India (SII) manufactured Covishield vaccine to enter these countries, a person aware of the development said on Thursday.

The development comes days after union external affairs minister S Jaishankar took up the issue of Covishield vaccine authorisation for travel in Europe with a top official of the bloc. The European Union (EU) Digital Covid Certificate framework, to facilitate free movement during the Covid pandemic, came into effect from 1 July.

The framework allows people vaccinated with vaccines authorized by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to be exempted from travel restrictions within the European Union.

Of the nine countries, Estonia is the first country to confirm that it will recognize all the vaccines authorized by the government of India for travel of Indians to the country, the person cited above said. This will also include Russain-developed Sputnik and the vaccine developed by US-based Moderna. 

Individual member states also have the flexibility to also accept vaccines that have been authorized at the national level or by the WHO. 

India has urged EU member states to individually consider extending a similar exemption to those travellers who have taken Covishield and Covaxin vaccine in India, and accept the vaccination certificate issued through the CoWIN portal. 

The genuineness of such vaccination certification can be authenticated on the CoWIN portal, the person said.

India has also conveyed to EU member nations that India will institute a reciprocal policy for recognition of the EU Digital Covid Certificate.

“Upon notification of Covishield and Covaxin for inclusion in the EU Digital Covid Certificate and recognition of Indian CoWIN vaccination certificates, Indian health authorities would reciprocally exempt the concerned EU Member State for exemption from mandatory quarantine all those persons carrying EU Digital Covid Certificate,” the person said.

SII has already applied to the EMA  seeking an EUA through AstraZeneca.

Covishield is recognised by UK-MHRA; and SII has supplied this vaccine to the UK and Canada apart from the low and medium income countries (LMICs).

So far 291 mn doses of Covishield have been given in India (which includes single shot and also double shots), and the company has exported close to 70 mn doses across the world.

If the EU restriction on Covishield continued, a minimum of a few hundred million people would face challenges in entering or travelling within the EU member states.

Meanwhile, the African Union Commission and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) had also urged the EU commission to consider increasing mandatory access to those vaccines deemed suitable for global rollout through the EU-supported COVAX Facility.