The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has donated a $15 million grant for COVID-19 vaccine trials in South Africa.

A US$15 million grant towards the COVID-19 vaccine efficacy trial in South Africa was awarded to Novavax by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

A US$15 million grant towards the COVID-19 vaccine efficacy trial in South Africa was awarded to Novavax by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.The Foundation has provided this fund to evaluate the safety, immunogenicity, and potential efficacy of a candidate vaccine to prevent COVID-19 infection amongst the South African population. It will evaluate how well these vaccines work in settings such as African countries. The aid is part of a larger, global clinical programme to evaluate NVX-CoV2373. The clinical trial will include two cohorts: healthy, HIV-negative adults and medically stable, HIV-positive adults.

As South Africa is experiencing a surge in COVID-19, the program will help assess the efficacy of the vaccine. The Phase 2 trial of the Novavax vaccine is being conducted in collaboration with Wits University. Novavax inc is known for developing vaccines for a broad range of infectious diseases.

The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a lot of potentially dangerous misinformation. For reliable advice on COVID-19 including symptoms, prevention and available treatment, please refer to the World Health Organisation or your national healthcare authority.