Pakistan expects 1.23 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine on 8th May

Pakistan is likely to receive the first shipment of the AstraZeneca vaccine on Saturday, May 8, under the COVAX program. CNN International’s producer for Pakistan, Sophia Saifi, revealed this in a tweet n Thursday.

“[Pakistan’s] health officials have confirmed to CNN that a shipment of 1.23 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine are expected to arrive on the 8th of May.”

Pakistan was supposed to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine doses by February this year, however, the supply got delayed after India diverted the supplies to meet its domestic needs, offsetting Pakistan’s plans for mass vaccination.

The Serum Institute of India (SII) — which is supplying doses of the vaccine to the COVAX program — diverted its supplies to meet India's internal needs, as the country is under the rampage of the second outbreak of coronavirus.

An official of the National Health Services, Regulations, and Coordination had then confirmed the development to the media saying: “Due to a surge [in coronavirus cases], their (Indians) indigenous demand went up resulting in delayed export authorization for COVAX. It has affected Pakistan along with many other countries which were scheduled to receive supplies during March.”

Following the delay, Pakistan ordered one million doses of the Sinopharm vaccine from China which arrived on March 30, besides the 60,000 doses of China’s single-dose vaccine, Convidecia.