Bringing COVID-19 vaccine for entire population to take some time: Asad Umar

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning and Development and Head of National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) Asad Umar on Saturday said that they had allowed the private sector to import COVID-19 vaccine so that Pakistanis who are in haste could be immunized, ARY NEWS reported.

Speaking during ARY NEWS programme, Sawal Ye Hai, the NCOC head said that the government has decided to vaccinate the public against COVID-19 free of cost.

“We could not bring vaccine for the entire population immediately as it will take some time,” he said.

Asad Umar, however, said that on the other hand, they have allowed the private sector to import vaccines so that those who are in hurry could get the vaccination. “There are many people who want an immediate vaccination,” he said.

The NCOC head said that it was the responsibility of the government to conduct anti-Covid immunization free of cost and so far they have not charged a single penny for it.

A countrywide Covid vaccination drive started Wednesday last. 0.5 million doses of the Sinopharm vaccine gifted by China is being used in the first phase. Sindh has been provided 84,000 doses of the vaccine, Punjab 70,000, KP 65,000, and Balochistan 10,300 doses.

A special Pakistan Air Force (PAF) plane brought the first batch of COVID-19 vaccine.

Furthermore, the Covax programme to ensure equitable worldwide access to Covid-19 vaccines published its first distribution list, with enough doses for countries to immunise more than three percent of their populations by mid-2021.

Countries will receive doses in proportion to population size, with the most going to India (97.2 million), Pakistan (17.2 million), Nigeria (16 million), Indonesia (13.7 million), Bangladesh (12.8 million) and Brazil (10.6 million).