Macron says France will help Africa make more COVID-19 vaccines

French president also pledged to donate more than 30 million vaccine doses by the end of the year to the UN-backed COVAX.

President Emmanuel Macron has said France will invest in boosting the production of COVID-19 vaccines in Africa, to help close a gap in the availability of the shots between African and Western nations. Speaking at a joint news conference with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in Pretoria on Friday, Macron said Africa made up about 20 percent of the world’s need for vaccines but only one percent of vaccine production. “Trying to lift the hurdles in order to allow vaccine production in South Africa and all of Africa, we are in favour of that,” Macron said.