PH to get 50K more Sputnik V jabs Sunday night


The country will receive another 50,000 doses of Sputnik V vaccines from Russia on Sunday night, May 30, the National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19 disclosed.

The initial batch of 15,000 doses of Sputnik V vaccines that arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Pasay City on May 1, 2021. (Ariel Fernandez)

The shipment will arrive via a Qatar Airways flight (QR928). It is expected to land at the Terminal 3 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) at around 11 p.m.

From there, it will be transported to the cold storage facility of Pharmaserv Express, Inc., a third-party logistics provider hired by the government, in Marikina City.

The vaccines will be distributed to areas with the highest number of COVID-19 cases, particularly in the National Capital Region (NCR) where the immunization program is being ramped up, the Department of Health (DOH) said.

Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. (left) shakes hands with Russian Ambassador to the Philippines Marat Pavlo while Health Secretary Francisco Duque III checks the container of the 15,000 doses of Sputnik V vaccines that arrived in the country on May 1, 2021. (Photo from the National Task Force Against COVID-19)

According to NTF, the incoming delivery represents the "second component" of the COVID-19 vaccines that Russian manufacturer Gamaleya Research Institute had committed to the Philippines.

The first component -- composed of 30,000 doses -- was delivered in two batches of 15,000 doses each, first on May 1 and second on May 12.

These eventually became the first dose of individuals in select areas of NCR. The DOH said that so far, no adverse event has been monitored among those who were inoculated with Sputnik V.

Once the fresh batch of Sputnik V jabs are delivered, the country's vaccine supply will increase to 8,329,500.