AFTER a donation of 305,370 doses of Pfizer vaccine in August, TT will get a second tranche of 304,200 doses of this covid19 vaccine from the US Government, said statements on Wednesday by the Government and the US Embassy.
The vaccines are due to arrive in two shipments at Piarco Airport at 8.22 am on Thursday and 8.22 am on Friday.
They are part of a total of 907,920 doses being donated to TT.
The ministry statement said Minister of Foreign and Caricom Affairs Dr Amery Browne welcomed the arrival.
"Minister Browne thanks the Government of the US for this generous donation, which is the result of sustained dialogue, diplomacy, and negotiations involving the Government of US, the Government of TT, other Caricom member states, the Caricom Secretariat, CARPHA and Pfizer.
It said the Prime Minister, while he was chairman of Caricom, initiated and led the effort to acquire vaccines on behalf of TT and Caricom, and since then, theGovernment of TT has continued to acquire WHO-approved covid19 vaccines, and the Ministry of Health will use these vaccines in its national rollout.
The US Embassy statement said, "The donation brings the total number of Pfizer vaccines that the US has donated to TT to 609,570.
"This donation is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to lead in the effort to vaccinate the world, having shipped over 280 million free vaccines to 110 countries to help us get out of this pandemic."
With the emergence of the omicron variant, US President Joe Biden said on December 2 that the US will accelerate the delivery of vaccines to countries that need them, said the statement.
"President Biden has pledged to deliver 200 million doses – more doses within the next 100 days – on the way to delivering more than 1.2 billion doses for the rest of the world.
The statement quoted US Embassy chargé d’affaires Shante Moore.
“The US is proud to donate these free covid19 vaccines to the people of TT, who are our neighbours, family members, and friends. I urge everyone to get vaccinated. As President Biden said, ‘We are doing our part, and we’ll do more, but this a global pandemic and everyone needs to fight it together.’”
The embassy said the 907,920 doses donated by the US will constitute 77 per cent of all vaccines donated to TT since deliveries began in February.
"The initial Pfizer vaccine donation allowed children aged 12-18 to be vaccinated and begin to return to school.
"The US Government only donates vaccines approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. These are the same vaccines that all American citizens can receive and are the same doses the US is sharing globally."
TT's vaccination rates have plummeted in recent months. Covid19 cases have increased rapidly.
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