2 million COVID-19 vaccine doses were expected to arrive in the Philippines this month, according to Galvez.
Vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. on Tuesday said that 2 million COVID-19 vaccine doses were expected to arrive in the Philippines this month.
In a report on GMA News Online, Galvez said that the Philippines would receive two million doses of COVID-19 vaccines manufactured by Russia’s Gamaleya Research Institute (Sputnik V) and China’s Sinovac Biotech (CoronaVac) this month.
During the Presidential press briefing, Galvez said that 1.5 million COVID-19 vaccine doses will be delivered by China’s Sinovac while 500,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses will come from Russia’s Gamaleya.
As for the additional donated AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine doses under the WHO-led COVAX Facility, Galvez said that they’re using diplomatic channels in order to ensure that the country will be able to receive them.
Galvez also said that the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine might arrive later this month, citing information from World Health Organization (WHO) country representative Rabindra Abeyasinghe.
READ ALSO | WHO: AstraZeneca COVID-19 Vaccines Via COVAX Shipment Delayed Because Of Supply Shortage
Meanwhile, Galvez said that the national government will focus its vaccination drive on high-risk areas such as Metro Manila and neighboring provinces.
Galvez said that the experts had recommended such a strategy in order to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease and to achieve herd immunity in Metro Manila, Regions 3, Region 4A, Cebu, Davao, Region 6, and Region 9.
In addition, Galvez said that frontline personnel in essential sectors, uniformed personnel, and the indigent population will be inoculated beginning in May 2021.
According to government data, over 800,000 Filipinos had already received a COVID-19 vaccine since the mass vaccination program started last March 1, 2021.
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