Iran to Receive 8.5 mln Doses of COVID-19 Vaccine through COVAX in A Few Months: WHO
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The World Health Organization said 8.5 million more doses of the coronavirus vaccine will be delivered to Iran through the COVAX global vaccine plan.
The WHO said in a statement that the COVAX shipment of the vaccines will be made in the next few months.
Iran received the first delivery of COVID-19 vaccines through COVAX facility in April.
The following is the statement by Dr Jaffar Hussain, the WHO’s Representative and Head of Mission to the Islamic Republic of Iran:
WHO is closely monitoring the situation of COVID-19 pandemic in Iran. The Organization reiterates its commitment to support the country in responding to the pandemic.
WHO acknowledges greatly the increase in frequency of vaccination recently after deployment of international and locally made vaccines. Based on the data shared by the Ministry of Health and Medical Education of the Islamic Republic of Iran, as of 20 August 2021, 21,805,879 doses of different vaccines have been administered in Iran.
This includes utilization of 16,378,331 of those for first dose and 5,427, 548 for 2nd dose of vaccination. This means thus far 19.3% of the whole population has received first dose whereas 6.38% of the whole population is fully vaccinated that is a considerable change in a few days. However, it is not enough for breaking the chain of viral transmission.
It is to be noted that the 8.5 million doses of COVAX allocation mentioned earlier are spanned to arrive over several months. The August to September consignment is approximately 3 million doses. WHO would like to make this correction and regrets any confusion caused in the previous statement. It is also reassuring that the government of I.R. Iran is now willing to accept more vaccines from multiple sources.
WHO emphasizes that vaccines are essential but not enough for prevention and control of the COVID-19 pandemic. All preventive public health measures should be observed by the government, communities, and individuals to interrupt the chain of virus transmission in the country. We encourage appropriate information sharing by the government of I.R. Iran with international agencies to facilitate further cooperation in order to save the lives of the vulnerable people.