By Kaswar Klasra
ISLAMABAD, Feb. 15 (Gwadar Pro) – Pakistan on Monday launched the registration process for citizens above 65 years old to get vaccination free of cost.
“Pleased to announce that registration for getting Covid vaccine is now open for all citizens 65 and above. Just write down your CNIC number and send message on 1166. Inshallah (God willing) vaccinations for this age group will start in March,” Federal Minister for Planning Mr. Asad Umar announced on Twitter.
The announcement was well-received by people across Pakistan who appreciated Imran Khan-led government’s policies. They also hailed China for ensuring the speedy supply of needed vaccines to Pakistan.
“It is indeed an excellent announcement. Now people like myself will get vaccinated on priority. Thank you Imran Khan, thank you China,” Mehr Bagh Ali, a retired government officer told Gwadar Pro over the telephone.
The registration drive for citizens above 65 was announced a couple of days after Pakistan approved another Chinese vaccine for emergency use.
Pakistan’s Drug Regulatory Authority gave authorization of the emergency use of single-dose CanSino vaccine last week on Friday after successful trials of the vaccine.
Pakistani authorities confirmed that the approval has been given after a successful phase-three trial of the vaccine in the country.
Pakistan is the second country after Mexico to have authorized the emergency use of the CanSino vaccine. Islamabad has already authorized the emergency use of China’s Sinopharm, Oxford-AstraZeneca, and Russia’s Sputnik vaccine.
During trials of the Cansino vaccine held in Pakistan, authorities observed that this was the only vaccine that was easy to store and handle as compared with three other vaccines Pakistan has recently approved.
“The most significant part of Cansino vaccine is that it doesn’t require a complex procedure for storage. Also, its efficiency is above 65 percent. These qualities make it one of the best choices for Pakistan,” a senior health official of Pakistan who directly supervised vaccination trials in Pakistan said.
Faisal Sultan, Special Advisor on Health to Prime Minister Imran Khan, told the media that Pakistan was planning to import tens of millions of doses of vaccine with the first shipment arriving in Pakistan in mid-March.
Pakistani authorities have also allowed private companies to vaccines approved by Pakistan’s Drug Regulatory Authority.
Chughtai Laboratories has become Pakistan’s first private entity to place an order of Russia’s Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine for commercial sale. One of the directors of Chughtai Laboratories confirmed this to local media in Pakistan on Sunday.
“At ChughtaiLab we are expecting our first shipment of the #COVID vaccine inshaAllah within the next 1-2 weeks. The Sputnik V vaccine has been shown to be 91.6 % effective. Already authorized for use in Pakistan. Working on appointment setting system. More details soon,” Dr. Omar Chughtai announced on Twitter on Sunday, February 14, 2021.
Despite concerns over fairness and higher prices, Pakistani authorities, last week, agreed to allow the commercial import and sale of vaccines without price caps, in contrast to most countries that are importing and administering vaccines through government channels