Sri Lanka has administered at least 3,506,077 doses of COVID vaccines so far, as per the statistics released yesterday by the Epidemiology Unit of the Ministry of Health.
Accordingly, the first dose of COVID-19 vaccines has already been administered to 2,605,558 individuals while the second dose has been administered to 900,519 individuals.
The first dose of the AstraZeneca Covishield vaccine has been given to 925,242 individuals and the second dose of the same vaccine has been given to 372,899 persons.
The first dose of the Sinopharm vaccine has been given to 1,565,521 people after it was rolled out among Sri Lankan nationals on May 8. The second dose of the Sinopharm vaccine has been given to 513,195 individuals.
A total of 114,795 individuals have received the first dose of the Russia-made Sputnik V vaccine. The second dose of the Sputnik V vaccine has been given to 14,425 people.
State Minister of Production, Supply, and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals Prof. Channa Jayasumana said the country is to receive Pfizer (mRNA), Moderna (mRNA) and Sinovac vaccines in two weeks.
These three WHO-approved vaccine brands are still not in use in Sri Lanka and by the second week of July, the Government hopes to administer at least one jab to all Sri Lankans above the age of 60.
The Government has also decided to administer two doses of COVID-19 vaccines for all Sri Lankans travelling overseas for employment.
Deputy Director-General of Public Health Services Dr. Hemantha Herath yesterday said that some countries recommend vaccination with a particular vaccine brand. If those vaccine brands are available in the country, Sri Lankans travelling to such countries can make a special request from the Director-General of Health Services to administer the two vaccine doses recommended by the respective country.
The total number of confirmed cases of Coronavirus reported in the country reached 253,618 on Sunday with 218,998 recoveries. Around 31,715 COVID-19 positive patients are currently receiving treatment at hospitals and Intermediate Treatment Centres. Meanwhile, 2,944 COVID-19 related fatalities have been reported in the country since the pandemic began.
(Daily news)
