Galvez sees ‘slight delay’ in delivery of vaccines from COVAX Facility

Philippine vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. on Tuesday said there would be a “slight delay” in the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines from the COVAX Facility due to logistical problems.

“The latest information from COVAX is that there will be a slight delay considering the constraints on global logistics,” Galvez said at a Palace press briefing.

Galvez’s statement comes after the COVAX Facility informed participating countries that deliveries of doses from the Serum Institute of India (SII) would be delayed in March and April due to India’s increased demand for vaccines.

“With that, the plan to increase the number of daily vaccinations will be affected,” he said.

“But I want to make a point that we have a good record considering that we only had 35,000 vaccinations in the first week or 5,000 a day. From 35,000 a week, we were able to increase it to 271,459 in the fourth week.”

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said on Monday that 979,200 doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine from COVAX would arrive in the country in April or early May.

The Philippines has so far received 525,600 AstraZeneca vaccine doses from COVAX Facility, a World Health Organization-backed initiative that seeks to ensure equitable access to vaccines, especially poorer nations. — RSJ, GMA News