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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider PH receives first ever supply of Sputnik Light vaccine

PH receives first ever supply of Sputnik Light vaccine

Published Nov 19, 2021 04:13 pm

The government of Russia donated 5,000 doses of Sputnik Light coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine to the Philippines on Friday, Nov. 19, its first ever supply of the said one-dose jab.

The vaccines arrived at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 2 along with the 2,805,000 doses of Sputnik V shots which were procured by the government from Russia.

The country receives 2,805,000 doses of government-procured Sputnik V and 5,000 doses of Russia-donated Sputnik Light COVID-19 vaccines at NAIA Terminal 2 on Nov. 19, 2021. (Photo: NTF Against COVID-19)

The shipments were welcomed by vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr., Department of Health Sec. Francisco Duque III, Russian Ambassador to the Philippines Marat Pavlov, and other task force officials on pandemic response.

The Sputnik Light variation of the Sputnik V vaccine which, like Janssen pharmaceutical’s Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine, only uses one dose to complete a primary series of vaccination. The country’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the use of Sputnik Light for COVID-19 vaccination back in August.

Galvez said the Sputnik Light donation will help further expand the country’s vaccine supply inventory which has already reached 133,169,970 doses.

“We extend our deepest gratitude to the Russian government and its people for this act of kindness and compassion to our country,” he said.

Further, the negotiation for the procurement of additional Sputnik Light jabs “are already underway,” according to Galvez.

“We are confident that the talks will yield positive results as we diversify our vaccine portfolio, scale up our vaccine throughput, and achieve herd immunity by the first quarter of 2022,” he noted.

Meanwhile, Galvez said the Sputnik V delivery completed the procurement contract of the government with Russian manufacturer Gamaleya Research Institute and the Russian Direct Investment Fund for the supply of 10 million doses of its vaccine.

“The completion of this contract is a testament of the robust relationship between our countries which transcends diplomatic relations. Moreover, it demonstrates Russia’s strong commitment to help provide greater vaccine accessibility to all nations including the Philippines,” the vaccine czar said.

Half of the Sputnik V supply or 1,402,500 doses are for Component I vaccination which means that they will be used for first dose while the remaining half will be for Component II.

The Sputnik Light and Sputnik V vaccines will be used in the upcoming National Vaccination Day from Nov. 29 to Dec. 1 where the government intends to vaccinate at least 15 million individuals.

Some of the single-dose Sputnik Light shots will also be allocated to far-flung and geographically isolated areas in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) so residents will no longer have to come back for a second dose.

Related Tags

Sputnik V sputnik light covid-19 Carlito Galvez Jr. 11192021
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