--- title: Charlize Theron and Darren Walker: How to End Global Vaccine Inequity description: Actress and activist Charlize Theron and Ford Foundation president Darren Walker argue that G20 nations must do more for vaccine equality. canonical: https://time.com/6102630/vaccine-inequity-charlize-theron-darren-walker/ author: Charlize Theron article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2021-10-06T11:00:40.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T12:27:48.914Z article:section: Ideas og:title: Charlize Theron and Darren Walker: How to End Global Vaccine Inequity og:description: Actress and activist Charlize Theron and Ford Foundation president Darren Walker argue that G20 nations must do more for vaccine equality. og:url: https://time.com/6102630/vaccine-inequity-charlize-theron-darren-walker/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt86e7e16281376646/698a1d4ee76ad27e0a639441/vaccine-Inequity-south-africa.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: SAFRICA-HEALTH-VIRUS-VACCINE-HERITAGE DAY og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Charlize Theron and Darren Walker: How to End Global Vaccine Inequity twitter:description: Actress and activist Charlize Theron and Ford Foundation president Darren Walker argue that G20 nations must do more for vaccine equality. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt86e7e16281376646/698a1d4ee76ad27e0a639441/vaccine-Inequity-south-africa.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Charlize Theron and Darren Walker on How to End Global Vaccine Inequity > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Inside TIME: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Inside TIME is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories. Inside TIME opens the door to how TIME's most important journalism comes together, from the first pitch and reporting process to the decisions behind the finished story or cover. Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs takes readers inside the newsroom, revealing the journalists, ideas and editorial choices behind the stories shaping the global conversation. 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It explains how TIME's journalism is made, from the first pitch through the editorial decisions behind a finished story or cover. #### How can I read about how TIME chooses its covers? Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=0d21162e-11e5-462e-bf7b-0967b549e7c1&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Making the COVID-19 Vaccine: A 50,000 step process [Watch (HLS stream): Making the COVID-19 Vaccine: A 50,000 step process](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/XGIqdw9j.m3u8) (7:28)  _Published 2021-04-18. Inside BioNTech's quest to vaccinate the world_ by [Charlize Theron](https://time.com/author/charlize-theron/) and [Darren Walker](https://time.com/author/darren-walker/) Oct 6, 2021 11:00 AM UTC  A woman looks on as she receives the Johnson and Johnson vaccine from Sister Nomhosi Msibi during the launch of the VaxuMzansi National Vaccine Day Campaign at the Gandhi Phoenix Settlement in Bhambayi township, north of Durban , on Sept. 24, 2021. A woman looks on as she receives the Johnson and Johnson vaccine from Sister Nomhosi Msibi during the launch of the VaxuMzansi National Vaccine Day Campaign at the Gandhi Phoenix Settlement in Bhambayi township, north of Durban , on Sept. 24, 2021. Rajesh Jantilal—AFP/Getty Images by [Charlize Theron](https://time.com/author/charlize-theron/) and [Darren Walker](https://time.com/author/darren-walker/) Oct 6, 2021 11:00 AM UTC This month, for the first time in two years, the G20 will meet in Rome to discuss a global, multilateral agenda. The stakes could not be higher. Certainly, member states are feeling the COVID-19 pandemic’s ongoing consequences. But, sadly, the 175 countries not at the table—most in the Global South—still face the gravest suffering and[ highest rates of death](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-51235105). Nowhere is the disparity more apparent than in vaccine access. In places like Los Angeles and New York City, where we respectively live and were vaccinated, large distribution sites like the [L.A. Forum](https://thelaforum.com/) and the [Javits Center ](https://javitscenter.com/)have helped the two cities administer a total of [23 million](http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/coronavirus/vaccine/vaccine-dashboard.htm) doses, [collectively](https://www1.nyc.gov/site/doh/covid/covid-19-data-vaccines.page). Meanwhile, we’ve heard from partners and colleagues across the globe about the barriers to getting vaccinated in less wealthy parts of the world—from months of waiting to lack of internet access to clinics running out of doses. These barriers add up fast, while the number of vaccinated people rises too slowly. To date, all of South Africa, Charlize’s home country, has administered just [17 million](https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps/countries-and-territories/south-africa/) doses. Indeed, while 17 of the G20’s member states already have vaccinated at least two-thirds of their[ populations](https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/world/covid-vaccinations-tracker.html), the vaccination rate across the continent of Africa is [below 5%](https://www.bbc.com/news/56100076). **_Read More:_**[_COVAX Was a Great Idea, But Is Now 500 Million Doses Short of Its Vaccine Distribution Goals. What Exactly Went Wrong?_](https://time.com/6096172/covax-vaccines-what-went-wrong/) Many countries across the Global South suffer a damning lack of vaccine doses—and even for those who do have access, uncertainty and vaccine hesitancy in vulnerable communities have been growing, due to either a lack of information, an excess of misinformation, or both. Without strong, robust civil-society organizations working on the ground to combat misinformation and support meaningful access for those in need, progress towards a more equitable recovery will be impossible. As global leaders, the members of the G20 have an urgent responsibility: To end the immediate crisis of vaccine inequity today and build long-term infrastructure that safeguards the world from future pandemics. First and foremost, this means supplying billions of doses to less-wealthy parts of the world. President Joe Biden’s [recent commitment](https://apnews.com/article/united-nations-general-assembly-joe-biden-pandemics-business-united-nations-e7c09c1f896d83c0ed80513082787bd3) to double U.S. vaccine donations is a welcome step—but even the 1.1 billion doses he vows to contribute will not be enough to reach global herd immunity. Ending this global health crisis requires a more robust and holistic sharing of resources. For instance, our current intellectual-property regime prioritizes pharmaceutical profit over public health outcomes. We recognize the power of intellectual-property protections to drive research, development, and innovation. But in the context of a pandemic like this one, those protections have deadly consequences by knee-capping the ability of resource-poor countries to manufacture life-saving vaccines. G20 members must join the more than 100 national governments and hundreds of civil-society organizations that have signed on to support a temporary waiver of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). With this waiver in place, government leaders around the world can finally build a vaccine infrastructure that empowers countries to quickly produce and distribute vaccines, in a way that’s rooted in collaboration, not competition. Crucially, we also need to ensure we translate doses manufactured into shots in the arms of those in need. That necessitates a reimagined and strengthened health infrastructures that commits to bolstering civil society, community health workers, and community-based organizations. **_Read More:_**[_The U.S. Can and Should Vaccinate Every Health Care Worker in the World_](https://time.com/6071509/vaccinate-health-care-workers-world/) Civil-society organizations have played an essential role in pandemic response—as watchdogs holding governments accountable, and as trusted partners and messengers serving vulnerable communities. From Dallas, Texas to Durban, South Africa, communities that have experienced a history of exploitation, neglect, and marginalization harbor an understandable distrust of the state. Understanding this fact is crucial, because in many places, like rural South Africa, distrust and hesitancy of the vaccines continue to rise, creating new barriers to recovery even as more doses become available. Especially in regions marked by internal conflict, political tension, language barriers, and social unrest, even the most well-intended distribution policies will fail without strong civil-society engagement and community-led action from organizations with a well-established foundation of trust and support. We have seen time and again, in our work with frontline organizations like the [Small Projects Foundation](https://www.spf.org.za/), that the _messenger matters._ Without robust civil-society organizations—including local newsrooms, community centers, and trusted health care providers—to disrupt dangerous COVID-19 conspiracies, vulnerable groups like women and immigrants are most likely to lack the information needed to make healthy choices. To create pipelines for a faster, more equitable response, the G20 must meaningfully invest in the work of such organizations. Five years ago, we both joined[ thousands](https://www.aids2016.org/) of activists in Durban to discuss another virus and global public health crisis: HIV/AIDS. There, at the 21st International AIDS Conference, we encouraged global leaders to disrupt the racism, sexism, transphobia, and homophobia that make HIV a treatable illness for some and a death sentence for others. These types of inequities and fear drive pandemics. Since then, thanks to fearless leadership from people living with HIV and civil-society champions, we’ve seen ongoing advocacy lead to an increased focus and shift of resources to vulnerable populations like youth, and [tangible policy change](https://www.iasociety.org/Web/WebContent/File/AIDS2016%5FImpact%5FReport.pdf)s like the government approval and formal rollout of the life-saving HIV preventative regimen PrEP in Kenya and increased HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention funding throughout the region. **_Read More:_**[_Why There Should Be a Moratorium on COVID-19 Booster Shots Until Low-Income Countries Get Vaccinated_](https://time.com/6089974/who-moratorium-covid-19-vaccine-boosters/) Today, we’re trying to propel similar change to fight inequity and stymie the pandemic’s devastation of the Global South. At the Ford Foundation, we are proud to launch a new $16 million grant-making initiative that will spur intellectual-property reform, fund public goods, and bolster civil-society organizations working in marginalized communities. And at the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, we’re working with longstanding partners to uproot harmful misinformation and vaccine hesitancy among adolescents and help remove barriers to vaccine access for young people, their families, and the under-resourced communities in which they live. That said, no group has more influence than the G20 to redistribute vaccine supply, reinvest in medical and civil-society infrastructure, and reimagine our global systems with equity, justice, and collaboration at the heart. Together, we can build a more equal, more equally prepared world. ## Transcript Kind: captions Language: en oh yes yes i'm vaccinated yes Very cool yes yeah yes, I did it was very cool to to know okay I'm gonna be vaccinated with a vaccine that I know really from day one I mean who can tell that they're part of the solution for such a pandemic situation I guess only a few people can say that and I'm really happy to be part of that If you've been vaccinated for COVID-19, chances are that you are benefiting from the science happening here at the German biotech company BioNtech. In December 2020 BioNtech in partnership with Pfizer were the first to earn authorization to distribute their vaccine to the public In March 2021 TIME spent a week watching how BioNtech makes a batch of 8 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine at their new manufacturing plant in Marburg they expect to produce 1 billion doses a year the pace of production has been breakneck from the start So in 2020 I think we worked at every holiday, I can remember Easter Saturday I was standing here pipetting samples to have the results as soon as possible and now 24-hour shifts in this lab are producing vaccines that will be shipped around the world There are approximately 50, 000 steps at the lab it begins with bags of pure mRNA the molecule that tells cells how to make the proteins that launch the immune response and a buffer solution that starts the coding process it emerges in bulk at the other end of the process as a liquid destined for vials most of the machines are named after the engineers that developed the process this one is named after Margaret the first patient in the clinical trials to receive the vaccine but the beating heart of the lab is this machine a container that uses pressurized ethanol to encase the mRNA and special lipid nanoparticles those nanoparticles keep the mRNA protected until it can jumpstart the immune response in the body's cells Speed is essential but inside the lab everyone moves slowly and methodically each of the 50,000 steps is logged by one technician confirmed by a second and only then does it actually happen it's very important that the quality of the product and all the raw materials is perfect here and so no impurities should be present in all raw materials and nothing which we don't want to have in our products one wrong move has the potential to damage the final product if there's any accidental exposure let's say from an ill-timed sneeze the entire batch must be thrown out, all eight million doses that's why everyone wears layers of protection and they even disinfect their gloved hands repeatedly in the lab where we were filming no one had ever told the technicians how many doses were in a batch after that they sprayed another application of disinfectant onto their gloves just to be sure based on our technology and on the antigen we were using no I wasn't I'm very confident in the technology we have until now vaccine development has been a slow process the BioNtech vaccine uses a new technology based on mRNA it is revolutionizing the way vaccines can be produced When the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, BioNtech was primarily a cancer vaccine company but by using this new mRNA technology it was able to quickly pivot to a coronavirus vaccine when you look back at any project you've ever done you've always looked back at the start and go wow okay if I'd known that now i could have cut you know a few hurdles out of my way earlier right but you're in a situation where you're doing something especially for us as a smaller company that was unprecedented the second part of the process happens at another factory where vials are filled and packed into boxes for shipment as the cycle comes to an end there's little time to celebrate after all another batch is waiting to be made ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6102630/vaccine-inequity-charlize-theron-darren-walker/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6102630/vaccine-inequity-charlize-theron-darren-walker/"},"headline":"Charlize Theron and Darren Walker on How to End Global Vaccine Inequity","datePublished":"2021-10-06T11:00:40.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T12:27:48.914Z","description":"Actress and activist Charlize Theron and Ford Foundation president Darren Walker argue that G20 nations must do more for vaccine 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