The possible suspension of patent protection for vaccines against the coronavirus is an ineffective measure in the current situation, Svenja Schulze, German Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, said on Wednesday, adding that improving cooperation with vaccine manufacturers will be a preferable option
BERLIN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th December, 2021) The possible suspension of patent protection for vaccines against the coronavirus is an ineffective measure in the current situation, Svenja Schulze, German Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, said on Wednesday, adding that improving cooperation with vaccine manufacturers will be a preferable option.
"As the former Minister of Science (in North Rhine-Westphalia), I see patent protection as the basis for successful research and development. I would be open to the idea if it was helpful right now. But the manufacturing process of modern vaccines is technically demanding and complex, so the suspension (of patent protection) would be of no use. In addition, the conditions have changed: there will be much larger production capacities worldwide in 2022 than there were in 2021," Schulze said in an interview with the RND media outlet.
Improved direct cooperation with vaccine producers will be more effective and could prove useful in the fight with potential new pandemics in the future, she added.
Germany has sent some 100 million vaccine doses to developing countries over the year, Schulze said, noting that Germany is also engaged in training specialists for BioNTech vaccine production in Rwanda. Berlin aims to allocate at least 75 million vaccine doses in 2022 while avoiding harming the interests of Germans willing to vaccinate, the minister said.
To date, over 70% of the German population, or some 59 million people, have completed the full vaccination course, and 31 million people, or 37% of the population, have received booster doses.
