Islamabad- Pakistan has increased the funds allocated for purchasing COVID-19 vaccine to USD 250 million from the earlier approved amount of USD 150 million.
It has also signed non-disclosure agreements with various multinational companies under which the recipient country will not make details of the vaccine public, the Dawn News reported.
Parliamentary Secretary on National Health Services (NHS) Nausheen Hamid told the daily that the allocation for vaccine purchase had been enhanced to USD 250 million.
We will sign a purchase agreement with more than one company to ensure that we get a vaccine. Russia had also offered us its vaccine recently. However, we are looking into its safety and efficacy as public health is our top priority, she was quoted as saying.
When asked when the vaccine will be available, Hamid said it was hoped that the delivery of the vaccine would start by the end of the first quarter of next year.
She said that in the initial phase of vaccinations, frontline health workers attending to COVID-19 patients and people over 65 years will be vaccinated.
In the second phase, the remaining healthcare workers and people over 60 years of age will get preference, she said, adding that the vaccine alliance GAVI has also pledged to provide vaccines for the 20 per cent population.
