Bangladesh to get COVID-19 vaccine on priority basis: Health secy

Secretary of health service division Md Abdul Mannan on Monday said Bangladesh will get COVID-19 vaccine on priority basis when the virus is developed, reports BSS.

Mannan said many countries including China and the UK are in the final stage for vaccine development as they are performing phase-3 human trial of COVID-19 vaccine development.

If these countries are able to develop coronavirus vaccines, Bangladesh will get inoculations on priority basis, Mannan told a virtual meeting of National Technical Advisory Committee in the conference room of the health ministry, an official release said.

Adding that the countries with per capita income below 4000 US dollar will get vaccines for free, Mannan said, “As per capita income of Bangladesh is below 2,000 US dollar, we will get vaccine for free,” the health secretary said.

Bangladesh is intensifying its efforts for developing connections with countries, which appeared as forerunner in a global race for developing inoculates against coronavirus, he added.

The secretary also said the country has a stock of 300,000 kits for COVID-19 test and the process of importing more kits is underway.

“There is no scarcity of kits… as we have three lakh kits for testing suspected cases of coronavirus and importing more kits are in process,”

Vice-chancellor of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) Kanak Kanti Barua, director general of Directorate General of Health Services Abul Kalam Azad, president of National Technical Advisory Committee Md Shahidullah, IEDCR director Meerjady Sabrina Flora, president of Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) Mostafa Jalal Mohiuddin, Swadhinata Chikitsak Parishad (SWACHIP) president M Iqbal Arslan, additional secretary (administration) of Health Service Division Sheikh Mujibor Rahman and eminent health experts, among others, joined the meeting through online.