UNITAID / COVID-19 TREATMENTS INVESTMENT
04-Jun-2021
00:03:02
As G7 leaders meet from 11-13 June in the United Kingdom to discuss the recovery from the pandemic, global health agency Unitaid is calling for increased investment in research and development for treatments for COVID-19. UNITAID
Subject to the Terms of Usages of UNifeed, UNifeed materials are available free of charge for news purposes only. UNifeed materials may not be sold or redistributed to third parties without the prior written consent of the UN or the UN entity which is source of the UNifeed material. All users of UNifeed materials must provide due credit to the United Nations or any UN entity source(s) in their use and broadcast of UNifeed materials.
Size
Format
Acquire
DESCRIPTION
STORY: UNITAID / COVID-19 TREATMENTS INVESTMENT
TRT: 3:02
SOURCE: UNITAID
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: FRENCH / NATS
DATELINE: 4 JUNE 2021, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND (UNITAID) / FILE
TRT: 3:02
SOURCE: UNITAID
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: FRENCH / NATS
DATELINE: 4 JUNE 2021, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND (UNITAID) / FILE
SHOTLIST
FILE – ALIMA - MAY 2021, GBESSIA, GUINEA
1.Wide shots, exterior, Epidemiological treatment center in Gbessia, Guinea.
4 JUNE 2021, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
2.SOUNDBITE (French) Dr Philippe Duneton, Executive Director, Unitaid:
“To fight COVID-19, we need all [available] tools. Vaccines, of course, but also treatments. For severe forms [of COVID-19], we have treatments that work, such as oxygen and corticosteroids, which reduce mortality by around 40 per cent. We also need antivirals that will kill the virus from the start of the infection. These are drugs that are expected at the end of the year, but we also need clinical research platforms. Unitaid [and the German government are] therefore supporting ANTICOV in [over a dozen] countries, which will not only allow clinical research to be carried out, but also ensure that this also works in Africa. This is a crucial element, especially in the countries of the South. In addition, we need to continue to invest in research and development, because we do not know the [future] evolution of the pandemic, for example with the variants. We must make sure that we have the tools, including the medicines, [necessary] to kill these new variants.”
FILE – ALIMA - MAY 2021 – GBESSIA, GUINEA
3. Wide shot, interior, shelves stocked with various medicines inside an office at the Epidemiological treatment centre in Gbessia, Guinea.
4. Wide shot, interior, shelves stocked with various medicines inside an office at the Epidemiological treatment centre in Gbessia, Guinea.
5. Med shot, woman takes stock of the medicines inside an office at the Epidemiological treatment centre in Gbessia, Guinea.
6. Close up, various medicines used in the trial. The medicines shown on screen include Nitazoxanide 500mg, Ciclesonide, valved inhalation chambers, and Paracetamol 500mg.
7. SOUNDBITE (French) Aminata Bagayoko, Project Coordinator of Coverage Africa/ANTICOV in Guinea, from The Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA):
“We have seen that in Africa, access to oxygen, care and hospitalization are quite limited. It is therefore quite important in this kind of situation to have cheaper drugs that are accessible to doctors, medical teams, and health centres.”
8. Various shots, after getting undressed, a coughing man is examined by a physician at the Epidemiological treatment centre in Gbessia, Guinea.
1.Wide shots, exterior, Epidemiological treatment center in Gbessia, Guinea.
4 JUNE 2021, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
2.SOUNDBITE (French) Dr Philippe Duneton, Executive Director, Unitaid:
“To fight COVID-19, we need all [available] tools. Vaccines, of course, but also treatments. For severe forms [of COVID-19], we have treatments that work, such as oxygen and corticosteroids, which reduce mortality by around 40 per cent. We also need antivirals that will kill the virus from the start of the infection. These are drugs that are expected at the end of the year, but we also need clinical research platforms. Unitaid [and the German government are] therefore supporting ANTICOV in [over a dozen] countries, which will not only allow clinical research to be carried out, but also ensure that this also works in Africa. This is a crucial element, especially in the countries of the South. In addition, we need to continue to invest in research and development, because we do not know the [future] evolution of the pandemic, for example with the variants. We must make sure that we have the tools, including the medicines, [necessary] to kill these new variants.”
FILE – ALIMA - MAY 2021 – GBESSIA, GUINEA
3. Wide shot, interior, shelves stocked with various medicines inside an office at the Epidemiological treatment centre in Gbessia, Guinea.
4. Wide shot, interior, shelves stocked with various medicines inside an office at the Epidemiological treatment centre in Gbessia, Guinea.
5. Med shot, woman takes stock of the medicines inside an office at the Epidemiological treatment centre in Gbessia, Guinea.
6. Close up, various medicines used in the trial. The medicines shown on screen include Nitazoxanide 500mg, Ciclesonide, valved inhalation chambers, and Paracetamol 500mg.
7. SOUNDBITE (French) Aminata Bagayoko, Project Coordinator of Coverage Africa/ANTICOV in Guinea, from The Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA):
“We have seen that in Africa, access to oxygen, care and hospitalization are quite limited. It is therefore quite important in this kind of situation to have cheaper drugs that are accessible to doctors, medical teams, and health centres.”
8. Various shots, after getting undressed, a coughing man is examined by a physician at the Epidemiological treatment centre in Gbessia, Guinea.
STORYLINE
As G7 leaders meet from 11-13 June in the United Kingdom to discuss the recovery from the pandemic, global health agency Unitaid is calling for increased investment in research and development for treatments for COVID-19.
The Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, is a global collaboration to accelerate development, production, and equitable access to COVID-19 tests, treatments, and vaccines.
As co-lead of the ACT-Accelerator's Therapeutics partnership, Unitaid Executive Director Dr Philippe Duneton has warned that vaccines cannot be the only tool we rely on to tackle the pandemic, emphasizing the need to invest in all available tools to combat the pandemic, including tests, treatments, and health systems support.
Dr Duneton said that the emergence of new viral variants means that the world needs to be prepared for a scenario where some of the tools that have already been developed or are under development may no longer be enough to bring the pandemic to an end everywhere. Urgent action and a renewed focus on treatments for COVID-19 is therefore needed to save lives and stay ahead of the changing virus.
He said, “To fight COVID-19, we need all [available] tools. Vaccines, of course, but also treatments. For severe forms [of COVID-19], we have treatments that work, such as oxygen and corticosteroids, which reduce mortality by around 40%. We also need antivirals that will kill the virus from the start of the infection. These are drugs that are expected at the end of the year, but we also need clinical research platforms.”
Most research into COVID-19 medicines is taking place in high-income countries, thereby limiting the development and relevant testing of products adapted to lower-income settings. But Unitaid has put funding behind the ANTICOV platform trial of COVID-19 medicines that are adapted to the needs of low- and middle-income countries, together with the German government. The trial will examine a drug combination aimed at treating mild-to-moderate cases hoping to prevent their progression into critical cases.
Dr Duneton said, “This is why Unitaid [and the German government are] supporting ANTICOV in more than a dozen countries, which will not only allow clinical research to be carried out, but also ensure that this also works in Africa. This is a very important element, especially in the countries of the South. In addition, we need to continue to invest in research and development, because we do not know the [future] evolution of the pandemic, for example with the variants. We must make sure that we have the tools, including the medicines, [necessary] to kill these new variants.”
“We have seen that in Africa, access to oxygen, care and hospitalization are quite limited. It is therefore quite important in this kind of situation to have cheaper drugs that are accessible to doctors, medical teams, and health centres,” said Aminata Bagayoko, Project Coordinator of Coverage Africa/ANTICOV in Guinea, from The Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA).
Led by the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi), the ANTICOV study will take place in countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Guinea, Mali, Mozambique, Sudan, and Uganda. It is the largest trial of its kind in Africa targeting mild-to-moderate cases of the virus.
But the work does not stop there. Unitaid and its partners are urging governments to invest in trials such as RECOVERY, which uncovered the treatment dexamethasone – estimated to have saved more than a million lives during the pandemic so far – and to put funding into the Therapeutics Partnership, to ensure that people in low- and middle-income countries can have access to new treatments as soon as they are available.
The Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, is a global collaboration to accelerate development, production, and equitable access to COVID-19 tests, treatments, and vaccines.
As co-lead of the ACT-Accelerator's Therapeutics partnership, Unitaid Executive Director Dr Philippe Duneton has warned that vaccines cannot be the only tool we rely on to tackle the pandemic, emphasizing the need to invest in all available tools to combat the pandemic, including tests, treatments, and health systems support.
Dr Duneton said that the emergence of new viral variants means that the world needs to be prepared for a scenario where some of the tools that have already been developed or are under development may no longer be enough to bring the pandemic to an end everywhere. Urgent action and a renewed focus on treatments for COVID-19 is therefore needed to save lives and stay ahead of the changing virus.
He said, “To fight COVID-19, we need all [available] tools. Vaccines, of course, but also treatments. For severe forms [of COVID-19], we have treatments that work, such as oxygen and corticosteroids, which reduce mortality by around 40%. We also need antivirals that will kill the virus from the start of the infection. These are drugs that are expected at the end of the year, but we also need clinical research platforms.”
Most research into COVID-19 medicines is taking place in high-income countries, thereby limiting the development and relevant testing of products adapted to lower-income settings. But Unitaid has put funding behind the ANTICOV platform trial of COVID-19 medicines that are adapted to the needs of low- and middle-income countries, together with the German government. The trial will examine a drug combination aimed at treating mild-to-moderate cases hoping to prevent their progression into critical cases.
Dr Duneton said, “This is why Unitaid [and the German government are] supporting ANTICOV in more than a dozen countries, which will not only allow clinical research to be carried out, but also ensure that this also works in Africa. This is a very important element, especially in the countries of the South. In addition, we need to continue to invest in research and development, because we do not know the [future] evolution of the pandemic, for example with the variants. We must make sure that we have the tools, including the medicines, [necessary] to kill these new variants.”
“We have seen that in Africa, access to oxygen, care and hospitalization are quite limited. It is therefore quite important in this kind of situation to have cheaper drugs that are accessible to doctors, medical teams, and health centres,” said Aminata Bagayoko, Project Coordinator of Coverage Africa/ANTICOV in Guinea, from The Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA).
Led by the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi), the ANTICOV study will take place in countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Guinea, Mali, Mozambique, Sudan, and Uganda. It is the largest trial of its kind in Africa targeting mild-to-moderate cases of the virus.
But the work does not stop there. Unitaid and its partners are urging governments to invest in trials such as RECOVERY, which uncovered the treatment dexamethasone – estimated to have saved more than a million lives during the pandemic so far – and to put funding into the Therapeutics Partnership, to ensure that people in low- and middle-income countries can have access to new treatments as soon as they are available.
Category
Topical Subjects
Source
Alternate Title
unifeed210604f