The UK has announced that it would fund one British and two Bangladesh universities for conducting a research project to increase vaccine access in developing economies including Bangladesh.
The University of Birmingham of UK and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) and BRAC University will jointly lead the research for finding out more effective ways of storing and transporting vaccines at recommended temperatures from manufacture to the point of use.
“Weak supply chains with inconsistent temperature control can reduce the effectiveness of vaccines by up to 25 percent, so this vital project will help fast track COVID-19 vaccine delivery in developing countries once one is found,” the British High Commission in Dhaka said.
It said the research initiative is one of the 20 joint global projects on which the UK government has invested £7.2 million to support vulnerable global communities with technological solutions to respond to COVID-19 and future pandemics.
“The research projects we are backing today will ensure that we equip some of the most vulnerable communities with the resources they need to tackle COVID-19 and build their long-term resilience to respond to future pandemics, making us all safer,” said the release quoting the UK’s Business Secretary Alok Sharma.
Noting that defeating coronavirus is a truly global endeavour, he said “which is why we’re backing Britain’s scientists and researchers to work with their international counterparts to find tech solutions to treat and combat this virus around the world.”
Prof Andrew Thompson, International Champion, UK Research and Innovation said: “COVID-19 is demonstrating how the world’s biggest problems transcend rich and poor countries. To find lasting, sustainable solutions to help us all during this current pandemic as well as to make us all more resilient for the future, we require global thinking, the mobilisation of global expertise and a global response. That is exactly what these new projects provide.”
“Working together, researchers in the UK and across the Global South will combine their knowledge and experience to develop innovative solutions to help empower local communities to overcome the wide-ranging challenges created by COVID-19.”
The British High Commission said the £7.2 million UK government funding will be managed by UK aid programmes, the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) and the Newton Fund, through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
The funding follows the launch of the government’s ambitious R&D Roadmap in July, which committed to boosting international collaboration in research and development and establishing global scientific partnerships that will create health, social and economic benefits across the world.
