UAE surpasses 10 million COVID-19 vaccine doses

UAE surpasses 10 million COVID-19 vaccine doses
April 23, 2021, 9:24 am

UAE's Minister of Health and Prevention Abdul Rahman al-Owais takes the first COVID-19 vaccine dose. (WAM)

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates have confirmed that they have administered more than ten million COVID-19 doses since beginning a coronavirus vaccination drive, according to state news agency WAM.

The UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention said that the milestone was a significant step in the country’s goal to achieve herd immunity. It said the number of doses administered also highlighted confidence among residents and citizens of the UAE in COVID-19 vaccines.

“This achievement is the outcome of the vision and directives of the country’s leadership and the significant efforts of the health sector and all front-line defenders to protect the community’s health and safety,” the Minister of Health and Prevention, Dr Abdul Rahman bin Mohammad bin Nasser al-Owais, said.

The country has so far approved the Sputnik V, AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Sinopharm vaccines.

Laboratory workers bag a biological sample at a drive-through COVID-19 coronavirus testing centre in al-Khawaneej district of the gulf emirate of Dubai, UAE. (File photo: AFP)

Earlier this year authorities announced that a new factory in Abu Dhabi will start manufacturing a COVID-19 vaccine from Chinese pharmaceutical giant Sinopharm later this year under a joint venture between Sinopharm and Abu Dhabi-based technology company Group 42 (G42).

The plant, which is being built in the Khalifa Industrial Zone of Abu Dhabi (KIZAD), will have a production capacity of 200 million doses a year

“The four types of vaccines are being distributed for free to all segments of the community and in all areas of the country, and they are safe and highly efficient,” added the minister.

Dr Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, chairman of the National COVID-19 Crisis Recovery Management and Governance Committee, said the cooperation and support of UAE residents and citizens had helped the country real the milestone.

On Thursday, the UAE’s national Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) announced it has recorded 2,081 new COVID-19 cases and four deaths in the previous 24 hours.

On Wednesday, the government announced that over 65 percent of those eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine in the UAE have been fully immunized.