COVAX: Bangladesh now the top recipient of Covid vaccines

Bangladesh remains the top recipient of Covid-19 vaccine doses under COVAX in one year as UNICEF delivered over 190 million doses of vaccines to Bangladesh. COVAX is responsible for more than 62 percent of the doses delivered to Bangladesh.The vaccines came through COVAX, the global initiative co-led by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and the World Health Organization with UNICEF as a key delivery partner.

UNICEF delivered the first COVAX consignment of vaccinations on June 1 last year, following the start of COVID 19 vaccination in Bangladesh in February 2021. Only 4% ofBangladesh’s population had been properly vaccinated at the time.After a year and a few months, more than 11.7 crore individuals, or 69 percent of Bangladesh‘s population, have received two doses of the vaccine.

Sheldon Yett, the UNICEF Representative in Bangladesh, said the success in putting millions of vaccines into the hands of people in every corner of the country has been nothing short of astounding. UNICEF has also aided the Government’s COVID-19 response by bolstering the cold and ultra-cold chains, delivering crucial supplies, stimulating demand, assisting with data management, and bolstering vaccine administration capability.