Wouldn't be easy to provide vaccine to entire population: Dr Faisal
Last updated on: 20 January,2021 07:57 pm
He said 1 million doses of coronavirus vaccine will be available in Pakistan in March.
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Special Assistant on National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination Dr Faisal Sultan on Wednesday said that 1 million doses of coronavirus vaccine will be available in Pakistan in March.
Addressing a press conference in Islamabad on Wednesday, he said that the government will provide corona vaccine free of cost to the general public.
Dr Faisal said that negotiations with two pharmaceutical companies are underway for procurement of vaccine as shortlisted by the Technical Committee with the approval of Drug Regularity Authority of Pakistan (DRAP).
The SAPM said Pakistan is also in touch with Chinese government for procuring anti-corona vaccine and the ambassador of the UK was also engaged in this regard.
Dr Faisal went on to say that the government machinery is functional in procuring vaccine and we will be able to vaccinate 1.1 million people and procure vaccine for 200 million populations till the first quarter of this year.
“The staff of Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) will be tasked in shifting and storing vaccines across the country,” he said.
“Frontline health workers will be vaccinated in first phase of this process and it will be expanded gradually for other health worker and aged patients above the age of 60 years,” the SAPM said and added registration of 400,000 health workers has been completed in this regard.
He said that it would not be easy to provide vaccines to the entire population of Pakistan, adding that a special technical committee has also been set up to look into the availability of coronavirus vaccine and the committee has identified 8 to 9 vaccines.