FILE PHOTO: A vial and sryinge are seen in front of a displayed Pfizer logo in this illustration taken January 11, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines will receive 2.2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech through the World Health Organization-led COVAX facility by the end of May, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said Thursday.
“Yung next delivery ng Pfizer, more or less sa 2.2 million I was informed yesterday is before the end of the month,” Galvez said in an event in Makati Medical Center.
(I was informed that the next delivery of Pfizer of more or less 2.2 million doses is before the end of the month.)
Galvez said they are already having logistics rehearsals for the handling of more Pfizer jabs.
“Meron kaming arrangement with UNICEF na diretso na kaagad sa Davao, diretso na kaagad sa Cebu at diretso na sa mga areas na paglalagakan natin ng Pfizer para wala po tayong double handling,” he added.
(We have an arrangement with UNICEF wherein the vaccines will be directly delivered to Davao and Cebu so that there will be no more double handling.)
Galvez thanked WHO’s representative to the Philippines Rabindra Abeysinghe, the COVAX facility, vaccine alliance Gavi and the U.S. government for the upcoming delivery of more vaccines.
Earlier this week, Galvez said the country was only expecting 1.1 million more doses of Pfizer’s vaccine.
The first batch of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines from the COVAX facility comprising 193,050 doses arrived on Monday, May 10.