The global race to find a vaccine for coronavirus will be bolstered by support announced by the Prime Minister, funded by the UK’s international development budget.
New £46 million package includes funding for urgent work to find a coronavirus vaccine and develop a rapid test for the disease.
Supported by UK funding, eight possible coronavirus vaccines are currently under development and efforts are being made to get any viable vaccines from sequencing of the virus to clinical testing in under a year – a record timeframe. Governments around the world could then work with pharmaceutical companies to get vaccines into production and use. The new support will bring the UK’s investment into COVID-19 vaccine research to £65 million.
UK experts are leading the scientific and medical response to the global coronavirus outbreak and the UK was one of the first countries to establish a laboratory test for the virus. However, no country has yet found a method of diagnosing coronavirus without sending samples to a lab for testing – a process that can take several days.
The new funding package, which includes support for the World Health Organization’s Flash Appeal, will also help vulnerable countries prepare for the spread of the disease in other ways.
The announcement brings the UK’s total support to fight the virus internationally to £91 million.
Original source: DFID
Published on 06 March 2020
