Staff Reporter :
The government has approved a proposal to purchase 15 million Covid-19 vaccine doses from China.
The cabinet committee on public purchase at a meeting on Thursday gave the final approval to procure the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine under a government-to-government deal.
Finance minister AHM Mustafa Kamal presided over the meeting.
As per the approval, the health services division of the health and family welfare ministry will procure the vaccines in the next three months-June, July and August.
“Each month 5 million doses of vaccine will be imported from the Chinese firm”, Shahida Aktar, additional secretary to the cabinet division, told reporters while briefing on the outcomes of the cabinet body meeting.
She said each dose of vaccine will cost US$10 or Tk 850 (one dollar equals Tk 85).
Bangladesh has already launched inoculation drive against Covid-19 with the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, produced by the Serum Institute of India, which it bought for $5 per dose.
The Chinese vaccine will cost Bangladesh double the Oxford-AstraZeneca shot.
Earlier on 19 May, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) gave its “in principle approval” to a proposal of the Health Services Division to import Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine. The CCEA also approved “in principle” procurement of Covid-19 vaccine from Russia in a meeting on 28 April.
But no specific proposal regarding the quantity and the cost of the Russian Sputnik-V has yet not come to the cabinet committee on public purchase, which is responsible for giving the final approval.
