US gives 5m more Pfizer doses to Pakistan

The United States has shipped five million more doses of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine to Pakistan to continue its shared efforts to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to a press release issued on Wednesday, this donation brings the total number of coronavirus vaccines provided by the US government to 32.6 million. The recent batch delivered to Pakistan is among the 500 million Pfizer doses the US government procured this summer to disseminate among 92 countries across the globe.

Pakistan has received more vaccines from the US than any other country in the world, and the US has already shipped 300 million doses worldwide. Besides vaccine donations, the US government has also provided $69.4 million to Pakistan in coronavirus assistance.

These facts highlight how the US has worked together with Pakistan since the start of the pandemic to improve infection prevention and control, enhance patient care, expand laboratory testing, disease monitoring, and case tracking in all districts, besides supporting frontline healthcare workers across the country.

To accelerate its efforts in combating Covid-19, especially after the emergence of the Omicron variant, US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken announced on December 21 that $580 million would be channelled to America’s multilateral partners.

“This additional funding is a significant contribution to turn vaccines into vaccinations; strengthen public health capacity; support communities in need and provide urgent life-saving relief. Multilateral organisations are playing an indispensable role in these efforts, and with this additional $580 million, the US is supporting even such partners to continue and accelerate the critical work they are doing to help end the pandemic, strengthen public health capacity, and provide urgent relief,” he said.

It is worth mentioning here that the US is the single-largest contributor in support of COVAX efforts to expand global access to Covid-19 vaccines.