Senegal to Get 200,000 Doses of China’s Sinopharm Vaccine

By BABACAR DIONE

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Senegal is to receive 200,000 doses of the Chinese COVID-19 vaccine Sinopharm Wednesday.

President Macky Sall will preside over a ceremony to mark the arrival of the the vaccines that the West African nation purchased for about $3.8 million, according to Senegal’s finance ministry.

Since the start of the pandemic, Senegal has recorded more than 31,000 cases, including 760 deaths, and contaminations have increased in the past few months.

On Feb. 10 Sall announced that vaccinations would begin at the end of February, starting with medical personnel and people at risk. He asked the Minister of Health and Social Action to take all the health, logistical, financial and social mobilization arrangements necessary for launching vaccination campaigns throughout the country.

Senegal is also expecting nearly 1.3 million vaccine doses through the COVAX initiative.

Senegal has already received 1,117 freezers approved by the World Health Organization for the storage of vaccines and cold rooms have been installed, according to the health ministry.