A Critical Review of Public-Private Partnerships in the COVID-19 Vaccine Supply Chain

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly and negatively affected the global economy and societal structures. Vaccination is considered the sole strategy capable of concluding this health crisis. Enhancing the efficiency of the vaccine supply chain is the key to controlling the pandemic, with public-private partnerships assuming critical responsibilities at nearly every phase of the supply chain. Most of the researchers agree that public-private partnerships are an important way to achieve international vaccine equity. During the COVID-19 pandemic, there are many public-private partnerships in the field of vaccines emerging, such as OWS, COVAX, ACTIV, etc. During the pandemic, the public sector provides funding to pharmaceutical enterprises through advance purchase agreements as the main form of cooperation to stimulate vaccine research and development. COVAX is the main platform for achieving equitable international vaccine distribution, but whether its role has been fully utilized remains to be seen. This study seeks to review prior studies on the involvement of PPP in the COVID-19 vaccine supply chain, identifying key participation mechanisms and leading stakeholders in different stages.