Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid has announced the Government of Japan will be donating COVID-19 vaccines to the Maldives.
In a tweet, Foreign Minister Shahid said the vaccines will be donated through the COVAX, a worldwide initiative aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines directed by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Minister Shahid welcomed the decision of the Japanese government to include the Maldives among the 10 recipients of the 11 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to be donated through COVAX. Minister Shahid thanked the Japanese government and said the donation is a true testament to the close relationship between the two countries.
COVAX was established to ensure fair and equitable access to the COVID-19 vaccine to all countries around the world. The Maldives received 12,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine on March 7 from COVAX. The facility had also previously granted 100,000 syringes and other vaccination equipment to the Maldives.
Maldives Food and Drug Authority (MFDA) has authorised a total of six COVID-19 vaccines in the Maldives. The authorised vaccines are Covishield, Sinopharm, Pfizer and Sputnik V, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson. Currently, the Maldives is only administering Sinopharm, Pfizer, and Covishield.