Africa-Press – Tanzania. TANZANIA yesterday received over 1.6 million ad- ditional Pfizer BioNTech vaccines donated by the government of the United States through the global COVAX vaccine sharing initiative.
Acting Immunization and Vaccine Development Pro- gram Manager from the Min-istry of Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children, Dr Ngegwe Bulula, received the donation from the Mission Director for United States Agency for International Development (US-AID) in Tanzania, Kate Som- vongsiri, during a ceremony at Julius Nyerere International Airport.
A press statement availed to the media yesterday said that as part of its efforts to end the pandemic globally, the US government has thus far donated over 3 million Covid-19 vaccine doses to Tanzania.
The US shipped more than one million doses of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine in July, enabling Tanzania to launch its nationwide vaccination campaign against the virus.
In November, the US government shipped 500,000 doses of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine to Tanzania to further support the country’s efforts to combat the spread of Covid-19.
These efforts are indicative of the US government’s strong partnership and commitment to the Tanzanian people and our shared interest in defeating Covid-19 together, reads part of the statement.
“We are committed to helping Tanzania and the world wins the fight against COVID-19.
“We commend the government of Tanzania for its efforts to vaccinate its popula- tion so far, and we hope this additional contribution of vaccine doses will accelerate the vac- cination campaign and bring us closer to ending the pandemic,” said US Ambassador to Tanza- nia, Mr Donald Wright.
America’s support for the global fight against Covid-19 includes donating 300 million vaccine doses to other countries, purchasing one billion vaccine doses to donate to nearly 100 developing coun- tries, contributing $4 bnto Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, in support of COVAX, the global initiative to equitably distribute safe and effective Covid-19 vaccines worldwide and delivering essential medicines, supplies and therapeutics, as well as other assistance to help countries rebuild economies, overcome food shortages, and strengthen health security.
To date, the US has pro- vided more than 80 million Co- vid-19 vaccine doses and more than $1.9bn in Covid-related assistance to African countries, with no strings attached.
US President Joe Biden has pledged that the US will be the world’s arsenal of vaccines in the shared fight against Co- vid-19.
“We will continue to do all we can to build a world that is safer and more secure against the threat of infectious disease,” President Biden said earlier this year.
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