Africa-Press – Mauritius. The People’s Republic of China stands with Mauritius in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and as such, Mauritius has procured a second consignment of 500,000 doses of Sinopharm vaccine, in addition to the 100,000 doses previously donated by China.
The vaccines arrived this evening on an Air Mauritius flight from China and will be used in the national vaccination campaign against the COVID-19 pandemic.
The consignment was received at the Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional integration and International trade, Minister of Land Transport and Light Rail, Mr Alan Ganoo and the Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr Kailesh Jagutpal, in the presence of the Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China, Mr Gong Yufeng, and other personalities.
In a statement, Minister Ganoo highlighted that this is the third consignment of Sinopharm vaccines that reached Mauritius from China. He expressed gratitude to the People’s Republic of China for its support to Mauritius in these trying times and added that this consignment bears testimony to the strong friendly relationship between the two countries.
This relationship, according to him, enabled Mauritius to procure the Sinopharm vaccines despite the difficult situation around the World. He underlined that more than 600,000 persons will be vaccinated with a first dose of vaccine locally in the coming days, in the span of six months.
He reiterated his appeal to the population to be inoculated as borders will soon reopen in order to revive the economic activities of the country. Minister Ganoo also urged the population to strictly adhere to safety and sanitary protocols put in place so as to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in the country.
For his part, Minister Jagutpal underscored that the hard work of all stakeholders is paying off as Mauritius is receiving the necessary doses of vaccines in order to reach herd immunity.
These vaccines, he stated, will enable the country to accelerate its national vaccination campaign, which is currently ongoing. He also expressed satisfaction with regards the vaccination campaign and stressed that almost 300,000 persons have already been inoculated with two doses of vaccines.
As for Mr Gong Yufeng, he underlined that the three consignments of Sinopharm vaccines sent to Mauritius from China demonstrates the good diplomatic relationship between the two countries.
This assistance from China will step up the vaccination campaign of Mauritius and play a key role in achieving herd immunity, reopening borders and reviving the local economy, he pointed out.
He informed that China, in the global fight against COVID-19, launched a worldwide humanitarian operation and up to now, has provided more than 450 million doses of vaccine to some 100 countries. China, he added, will continue to assist developing countries, including Mauritius, in containing the pandemic.
Furthermore, he underpinned that the newly appointed Chinese Ambassador to Mauritius arrived in Mauritius tonight and is looking forward to strengthen the bilateral relationship between China and Mauritius.
