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Yesterday morning El Salvador received 1.5 million vaccines against Covid-19 donated by the United States through the Global Access Fund for Covid-19 Vaccines (COVAX). UNICEF in El Salvador shared photographs of people with posters with the slogan “COVAX, reliable partner”, while in Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei has described the system as a failure despite being, for now, the mechanism by which the country has received more immunizers.
In the early morning, the neighboring country received the 1.5 million vaccines from the Moderna pharmaceutical company as part of the donation promised by the United States of 80 million doses through the COVAX system of the World Health Organization (WHO) or by direct delivery to several of the countries facing difficulties due to the pandemic.
The government of US President Joe Biden has so far shipped vaccines to El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica, Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. Delivery is still required to Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, Uruguay, Panama, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, other Caribbean nations, and Guatemala.
GIAMMATTEI: COVAX IS A FAILURE
Despite the fact that neighboring countries have received batches of vaccines donated by the United States and others acquired by them through this mechanism, President Alejandro Giammattei has described the COVAX system as “a failure.”
This has justified it low due to some delays in the acquisition of the immunizer. “A small group of countries have all the vaccines and a large number of countries do not have access to the vaccine. […] the COVAX system has been a failure ”, declared Giammattei in April.
BUT FOR GUATEMALA, IT IS THE ONE THAT SENT THE MOST
However, in Guatemala most of the vaccines arriving in the country through the COVAX mechanism. With three batches received – two of 321,600 and one of 81,600 doses – the country counts 724,800 doses of AstraZeneca, an amount that exceeds the four deliveries of Sputnik V, which together add up to 350 thousand doses.
It is unknown if the donation from the United States will also arrive through COVAX.
Last Friday during a virtual meeting of the United Nations (UN) Alejandro Giammattei pointed out that the health crisis has been prolonged due to the slow and unequal distribution of coronavirus vaccines, especially in low and middle-income countries. The foregoing despite the fact that nearby countries such as Honduras and El Salvador have received vaccines through COVAX or direct purchase with Sputnik V.
“We reiterate the importance of guaranteeing equitable and universal access to vaccines against Covid-19, medicines and safe treatments that may be available to the population,” Giammattei declared at the United Nations meeting.
PFIZER DOSES EXPECTED
The slow promulgation of the Responsibility Law has also affected the arrival of another batch of COVAX, which, according to the Minister of Health Amelia Flores will be “important”, but which is “tied” to the regulations that have not yet sanctioned the Executive because Congress has not sent it to him. Although there is no specific date yet, the head of the portfolio announced that the doses will be from Pfizer.
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