Ukraine strikes deal for supply of 500,000 doses of Indian COVISHIELD vaccine

Ukraine has agreed on the supply of 500,000 doses of Indian-made COVISHIELD vaccine against COVID-19.

"Following sustained efforts by the Embassy of India in Ukraine and the support of Government of India, the first tranche of 500,000 doses of Made in India COVISHIELD vaccine manufactured by Serum Institute India is expected to be delivered from India to Ukraine shortly. These vaccines would allow for Ukraine to initiate its public vaccination drive across the country," the Embassy of India in Ukraine wrote on Facebook on February 20, 2021.

It is noted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's personal request to Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and sustained efforts from the Ministries of Health and Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, and Ambassador of India in Ukraine Partha Satpathy have ensured that Ukraine is one of the early countries to receive vaccine from India in February.

Read alsoCOVID-19: Number of new active cases exceeds 6,000, third day in row, on Feb 20"Going forward, larger quantities of Made in India vaccines are expected to be supplied, as production is ramped up in India, to ensure Ukraine's health security and the well-being of all Ukrainians. This would aid not only towards ensuring well-being, but also towards the restoration of many sectors of the economy that have suffered immensely due to COVID-19, and return livelihoods to thousands of people. This supply of vaccine is another exemplar of the major role played by Indian pharmaceuticals industry in ensuring the health security of Ukraine," reads the report.

Vaccination against COVID-19 in Ukraine

• On February 5, Ukrainian Health Minister Maksym Stepanov said the vaccination against COVID-19 in Ukraine would start after February 15.
• At the same time, he stressed the vaccination would be carried out exclusively with safe vaccines. According to Stepanov, Ukraine will use vaccines from at least three or four different producers.
• The minister assured the situation is the same almost all over the world where the vaccination is carried out with the use of vaccines from several producers.