SVG gets 5,000 doses to inoculate 2,500
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts -THE Federation was expected to receive its first doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine yesterday (Feb. 11) when the shipment would have arrived from Dominica as part of the pool that came from India last Tuesday evening.
As SKNVibes has been reporting, a load of 170,000 doses was sent to the region through Dominica and Barbados, and the leaders of the two territories indicated that it would be shared with territories across the region.
Dominica received 70,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine while Barbados got 100,000.
Prime Minister of Dominica, Roosevelt Skerrit indicated that they would have begun shipping the vaccines yesterday.
St. Vincent and Grenadines’ Prime Minister, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves revealed that his country, St. Kitts and Nevis and Antigua and Barbuda would be serviced yesterday by Dominica.
In a media brief yesterday, Gonsalves explained that his territory is expected to receive 5,000 doses that would cover 2,500 people on the island.
“The Prime Minister of Dominica told me that in keeping with our resolve within the Caribbean Community that with whatever little we have we will share with one another. And we are getting some from Dominica, I think this afternoon. I think some are going to St. Kitts and Antigua and Barbuda from Dominica,” explained Gonsalves.
In the Federation, since news broke that the shipment of vaccines arrived and would be shared with member states of the OECS, health officials have not directly commented on the disclosure.
Gonsalves emphasised the point of sharing in his thank you letter to the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi for supplying the vaccine.
SKNVibes understands that St. Vincent and the Grenadines received 5,000 doses, Antigua and Barbuda 5,000 and St. Kitts and Nevis was expected to receive 5,000 doses as well.
The AstraZeneca vaccine has to be applied in two doses to be effective.
SKNVibes reached out to Chief Medical Officer Dr. Hazel Laws for a comment but she was unavailable up to publication time.
