Dhaka to receive 10 lakh Pfizer vaccine doses shortly

Another 10 lakh doses of Pfizer vaccine from COVAX facility will reach Bangladesh.

Dhaka, Sept 1 :  Another 10 lakh doses of Pfizer vaccine from COVAX facility will reach Bangladesh on Wednesday afternoon.

“The Pfizer vaccine doses, gifted by the US, are expected to arrive at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport around 5 PM, said a handout of the  Health Ministry.

US Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R Miller and Health Services Division Secretary Lokman Hossain Mia will be present there to receive the jabs.

Earlier on July 10, Health Minister Zahid Maleque said Bangladesh will receive 60 lakh more Pfizer jabs from COVAX facility. Fifty lakh doses will arrive in phases by September, he said.

Bangladesh started administering the first doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine at three centres in Dhaka to fight off Covid-19 on June 21.

The United States said it is committed to leading the global response to the Covid-19 pandemic and they will begin this summer the allocation of 500 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine it is providing to Gavi for distribution by COVAX to countries around the world. 

US President Joe Biden reaffirmed this commitment by announcing that the US will donate 80 million doses of vaccines to support global needs. 

The US is working with its G7 partners, the EU, COVAX, and others in a multilateral effort focused on saving lives, ending the pandemic, and supporting the global economic recovery, reports UNB.