Administration of Pfizer, Sinopharm vaccines to begin next week

The government will begin administration of Pfizer and Sinopharm vaccines from next week, ABM Khurshid Alam, director general of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), said on Monday.

Khurshid Alam came up with the announcement while inspecting a hospital in Mohakhali area of Dhaka this noon.

He, however, did not mention any exact date of beginning of the inoculation drive.

Besides, a DGHS source said the vaccine will be given to those who have already registered their names. The registered people will be notified through text message immediately, the source added.

The government received six lakh doses of Chinese Sinopharm vaccine, gifted by China government on Sunday.

Earlier on 31 May, the government also received a consignment of 1,00,620 doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine under Covax programme.

Vaccination drive

Bangladesh launched its vaccination drive on February 7 with Oxford-AstraZeneca doses purchased from India’s Serum Institute.

The administration of the first dose remained suspended since April 26.

The country, the prime recipient of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines, has also suspended the registration for Covid-19 jabs due to vaccine shortage amid a delay in the arrival of shipments from India.

However, the administering of the 1st dose of Chinese Sinopharm vaccine against Covid-19 began in Bangladesh on May 25.