Head of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) and Federal Minister for Planning, Development, Reforms and Special Initiatives Asad Umar, on Tuesday, chaired an NCOC meeting where he discussed the government’s progress in procuring COVID-19 vaccines. He said that 1.1 million COVID-19 vaccines will be available in the country in March 2021. Meanwhile, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Faisal Sultan said that the first batch of coronavirus vaccine from China will arrive in the first week of February.
Addressing media, Asad Umar said that frontline workers would be prioritised during vaccination. He also said that since the procurement of vaccines will take some time, the public should adhere to precautions and keep following all necessary COVID-19 stardard operating procedures (SOPs).
Dr Faisal Sultan, in an interview with the Turkish news agency, said that the Chinese pharmaceutical giant Sinopharm will send Pakistan 1.1 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine. “The first installment of 1.1 million doses, for about 500,000 people, will be received from Sinopharm,” he elaborated.
A total of 506,701 COVID-19 cases have so far been reported in Pakistan. As of January 11, the total number of active COVID-19 cases in the country stands at 34,007.
