Emergency meeting on Covid-19 vaccine held at PMO

An emergency meeting on the preparation and implementation plan of the national Covid-19 vaccination program was held at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Thursday afternoon.

The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) gave a power point presentation at the meeting on the uses of coronavirus vaccine planning.

Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque attended the meeting as the chief guest.

Meanwhile, the government signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Indian company Serum Institute of India, which manufactures vaccines and immuno-biologicals, and Beximco Pharmaceuticals Ltd on Thursday.

Health Minister Zahid Maleque and Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Vikram Kumar Doraiswami were, among others, present at the signing ceremony held at the Health Service Division.

As per the MoU, the Serum Institute of India will initially provide 30 million doses of Oxford-AtraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine to Bangladesh once it is finally approved for human application.

Talking to reporters, the minister said in the first phase, Serum Institute of India will supply 30 million doses of vaccine to Bangladesh. “The vaccine will be safe for human body. It has been proved to be effective.”

He said a total of 15 million people can be vaccinated with each getting two doses.

The meeting was also attended, among others, by Chief Coordinator of SDG to the Prime Minister’s Office Zuena Aziz, Secretary of the Prime Minister’s Office M Tofazzal Hossen Miah, Beximco Pharmaceuticals Ltd Managing Director Nazmul Hasan Papon, secretaries and directors general of the concerned ministries and divisions, representatives of the law enforcing agencies, public health specialists and concerned PMO officials.

Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister’s Office Dr Ahmad Kaikaus presided over the meeting.

Considering the phase-wise availability of the vaccine, the meeting also has decided that health workers, frontline workers, less disease resistant people, age old people, long term disease infected old people, education workers and mass transport workers will get preference in vaccination program.

Before launching the vaccination program, a list of the most privileged people will be formulated and national, district and upazila level monitoring committees also will be formed.

“All the people throughout the country will get the coronavirus vaccination in phases,” said the health minister quoting the prime minster.