Millions of Covid-19 vaccine doses expected by year-end

Dubai - Turkey may start administering China’s Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine by the end of December.

By Joydeep Sen Gupta

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Published: Tue 8 Dec 2020, 11:15 PM

The US has recorded its most coronavirus disease (Covid-19)-related deaths over a week-long period, as the lethal contagion spreads across the country.

The nation is averaging nearly 200,000 cases per day, an increase of 15% from the average two weeks earlier, and has recorded over 15 million total cases so far.


Now, the outgoing Donald Trump administration hopes to have close to 40 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine before 2020 draws to a close.

It plans to distribute half of those in December and hold back the other half to give the same people their second dose of the two-shot regimen.


Margaret Keenan, who turns 91 next week, became the first person on Tuesday to receive a Covid-19 jab in the UK, as part of the mass vaccination programme being rolled out across the island nation.

In Africa, Egypt is leading the Covid-19 resilience. The officials of the Arab world’s most populous nation are coordinating with Gavi, the global vaccine alliance, to procure 20 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine. It is estimated that initial supplies of jabs are expected by May 2021.

Turkey may start administering China’s Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine by the end of December, the country’s Health Minister Fahrettin Koca was quoted on Tuesday by Sözcü, a Turkish daily.

Earlier in November, Turkey had signed a contract to buy 50 million doses of Coronavac, which will be delivered in batches between December and February.

China, which has been expanding its presence in South America, is poised to beat the US in its own backyard with vaccine diplomacy, as Washington grapples with the contagion back home.

reporters@khaleejtimes.com

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