Pakistan to get 40m more coronavirus vaccine doses from COVAX

• Pakistan will get 40 million more doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from COVAX.
• Pakistan has already received over 91 million doses of the COVID-19.
  
• It is half of the total 175 million doses that have been administered in the country so far, says UNICEF.
  

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will get 40 million more doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in the first quarter of the current year under the COVAX facility, said the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Pakistan on Wednesday.

UNICEF Pakistan said that since May 2021, Pakistan has already received over 91 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine under the COVAX facility. It was half of the total 175 million doses that have been administered in the country so far, added UNICEF Pakistan.

The global donor agency said that UNICEF also delivered 41 ultra-cold chain equipment and a huge quantity of personal protective equipment, syringes, laboratory equipment, and other essential supplies.

"Since the beginning of the COVID-19 emergency, more than 150 million people (60 percent of the population) have been reached with messages on COVID-19 prevention and access to services through national media channels with UNICEF support, and more than 50 million at-risk people have been reached through community engagement activities," a statement read.

Moreover, almost 9 million people received information and guidance through a national helpline supported by UNICEF, the UN agency said. The donor agency informed that since the outbreak of COVID-19, UNICEF has also tried to mitigate socio-economic impacts of the pandemic and supported vulnerable families and children through the provision of safe water, adequate sanitation and hygiene, safe formal and non-formal education, primary health care services, and immunization, screening, and treatment of malnutrition.

UNICEF Pakistan said it also supports the government to address the gender gap in COVID-19 vaccination through door-to-door vaccination drives, the establishment of vaccine booths for women, and recruiting female vaccinators (more than 200) to increase the uptake of the vaccine among women.

COVAX is co-led by Gavi, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and the World Health Organization. Its aim is to accelerate the development and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines and to guarantee fair and equitable access for every country in the world.