Islamabad, 13 August 2021 (TDI): The official handover ceremony for the newly arrived Chinese Sinopharm vaccines, from China under COVAX was held on Thursday in Islamabad. The Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Nong Rong along with SAPM (Special assistance to PM Khan ) on health Dr. Faisal Sultan attended the ceremony.
Pakistan officially received the first batch of 970,000 doses of Chinese Sinopharm vaccines under COVAX on Wednesday. The ceremony featured the official handover of these vaccines to Pakistan.
At the event SAPM, Dr. Faisal Sultan thanked China for its continuous vaccine supply to Pakistan. Dr. Faisal mentioned that the arrival of vaccines to Pakistan is a depiction of China’s commitment to providing Chinese vaccines globally and also a reflection of deep bilateral ties between the two states.
Dr. Faisal also mentioned that all the Chinese vaccines are efficient and safe to use. The Pakistani population has shown great acceptability to the vaccine and the newly arrived consignment will boost up the vaccination drive of Pakistan, said Dr. Faisal.
On the occasion, Ambassador Nong Rong said that the two states have always been there for each other especially in the time of the pandemic, and mentioned that supplying vaccines to Pakistan is a priority of China.
He also mentioned that China will send more vaccines to Pakistan in the coming times under the COVAX program.
Nong also urged the international community to refrain from vaccine nationalism and politicization of the virus. ‘This common enemy for mankind(COVID) can be defeated in the earliest possible way if the international community works together,’ emphasized Nong.
Today in a tweet Nong also thanked UNICEF Pakistan, Dr. Faisal Sultan, and WHO Pakistan for their teamwork in making the Chinese vaccine a public good.
