(Reuters) -Africa’s most important public health agency is currently in negotiations with Pfizer On Thursday, the director of the company stated that it was interested in bringing antiviral Paxlovid pills to COVID-19.

Paxlovid prevented nearly 90% of deaths and hospitalisations, according to Pfizer.

John Nkengasong is director at the Africa Centres for Disease Control. He stated, “We are really in close discussions with Pfizer. We want to see what we can do to make the drug available on Africa and accessible on the continent. That’s the Paxlovid Drugs.”

The world’s governments are trying to purchase Paxlovid. However, Merck’s Molnupiravir is facing setbacks due to disappointing trial results.

Nkengasong stated that procuring COVID-19 drug supplies was one of the three main strategies to combat African pandemics in 2022. He also suggested scaling up vaccines and increasing testing.

In the event of another transmissible variant emerging, and public health systems being overwhelmed by it, drugs for COVID-19 will be critical.

Nkengasong stated that drugs such as Paxlovid are the only solution. “That way, the burden on the health system and constraints will be reduced.”

“That’s the reason we are very active in working on those three items this year,” he stated.

Since the beginning of the pandemic in 2001, Africa has seen just 10 million COVID-19-related cases. But the true number may be higher because of patchy testing.

Many African countries are experiencing the fourth and fifth waves of infected.

Nkengasong stated that 10% of Africans had been fully immunized.

South Korea will treat COVID-19 patients using Paxlovid from Friday. This is the first Asian country that has done so.