The Ministry of Health comes out with an announcement: No anti vaccine - CO VID still ahead

The Ministry of Health and the Republic of Kosovo through this communique has said that it wants to share with the general public information that concerns commitments to obtain a vaccine against COVID-19.

Furthermore, it says that along with the IKSHPK, the WHO Office and UNICEF Office, after meeting all conditions, it is awaiting final confirmation of taking the first doses of vaccines against COVIED-19, through COVAX mechanization.

Full announcement:

Knowing the fact that the demand for the vaccine will be huge throughout, since July 2020, MSh has begun activities to ensure as fast access to the vaccine, in some respects, including application through global mechanization COVAX in one direction and contact with partner states and directly with anti-mocation companies. COVID-19.

COVAX, is a global initiative aimed at equal access to vaccines COVID-19, led by the GAVI Alliance of Vacs, the World Health Organisation, the Coalition for Epidemiic Readiness Innovations and others.

1.

With the first contact set up in the COVAX mechanism and the appointment of the focal point for Kosovo contacts with this mechanism, the Health Ministry has been confirmed by officials of this mechanization (where O participates BS, U NICEF, World Bank, various charity foundations, international technical agencies, vaccine producers, etc.) that Kosovo has qualified among 92 countries (of small and medium incomes), which through this mechanization will receive free vaccine against COVID-19 for 20% of the population, or in the case of Kosovo, sufficient doses for 360,000 people.

Further, there has been official application to this mechanism, prepared and adopted State Inoculation Plan COVID-19 in Kosovo (according to proposed vaccine distribution scenarios from COVAX), the needed capacity of the cold vaccine storage chain has been established, health personnel training in modules needed for providing knowledge and new skills for the application of the vaccine against COVID, categories that will be vaccinated in three stages, and the manual for monitoring and investigating potential side effects, developed by the National Public Health Institute, has been established.

In addition to the plan, which has been made public on the Health Ministry website: (https://msh.rks-gov.net/wp-content/unloads/2021/02/Plani-Centere-I-Waxin-Condden-19.pdf) all other procedures concerning the import of vaccines and the fulfillment of all conditions from Kosovo to take vaccines from this mechanism.

COVAX officials have confirmed to the MS receiving this plan, which they have recognised as being accepted/confirmed.

By February 3rd, 2021, the COVAX mechanism has published its Web site as well as the vaccine distribution route for the winning countries where Kosovo, according to the announcement/road, earns 100800 doses of vaccine Astra Zeneca, late February (in the first Q1 centre of 2021). https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/act-accelerator/Covax/Covax-internation-dist.pdf?rsn=7889475d 5

After this announcement of COVAX, through the focal point contacts that MS has in this mechanism, has also been asked a review of the State Vaccination Plan, aiming to vaccinate priority groups or 3% of the population in the first phase, this detailed plan that has contained precise planning for the other two stages of vaccines, including the subsequent vaccine of 17% of the population and later 50% of the population, in order to achieve invisibility by 70% of the population in Kosovo. The revised plan has been accepted by COVAX.

Together with the IKSHPK, WHO Office and UNICEF Office, after meeting all conditions, it is awaiting final confirmation of the first doses of vaccines against COVIED-19, through COVAX mechanization.

2.

The other direction in which MS is engaged in providing vaccines has dealt with contacts with European Union states and directly with vaccine producers.

On behalf of the Republic of Kosovo, the Minister of Health, along with the Commission for Negotiation for Anti-Convid vaccine, has contacted PFIZER representative Mr. Roberto Rocha (country Manager for the Adriatic region).

On December 7, 2020, in the middle of the Ministry of Health, Mr. Armend Zemaj and Pfizer representative Mrs. Janine Smalls (President Global, Emering Markets-Pfizer Biopmacetics Group), has been signed, as a first step and condition to continue with other virtual negotiations meetings.

On 16 December, the first virtual meeting between the MS and Pfizer has been held.

On December 30th, MS has been announced via e-mail that by company representatives, Pfizer has put Kosovo on his list as well as on support for sharing and quantity of vaccine against COVID-19, divided into several contingents.

According to the announcement that the MS had received on December 30th from Pfizer, this company had also made the monitoring schedule of the vaccine distribution for Kosovo, under which 11,700 doses would be distributed at the end of February by Pfizer, 13,600 doses at Q2 - the second leg of the year and the third half of 2,374,650 doses in the second part of 2021.

At the January 5th 2021 meeting, Pfizer representatives during the virtual meeting with the State Commission for Inoculation, in the presence of Minister Zemaj, have confirmed that there have already been 500,000 vaccines against this virus from this company and have provided approval that this could be communicated to the public in Kosovo.

On January 8th, MS has again been confirmed that 500,000 Pfizer vaccines have been divided into Kosovo.

At the January 8th meeting, the parties have agreed that within the week, the MS is also sending the final signing agreement.

At each meeting, after January 8th, the MS has demanded that the parties have the final agreement signed.

Even though the MS has been told by Pfizer representatives that the agreement is ready and will be sent for signature, the MS has yet to accept the agreement in question, and has not been explained by the company in question even though there are delays in this regard.

3.

Beyond negotiating with Pfizer, the MS has also reached equipment with Austria's state for security through them of 600,000 vaccines, which could be taken after the Austrian state has made vaccine purchases in the necessary amounts for itself.

EU commitments, meanwhile, to assist Western Balkan countries in providing vaccines against COVID-19 is known, and they have so far not resulted in concrete insurance of the first doses, as opposed to sharing a set of financial means for that purpose, of which 7.5 million will benefit Kosovo as well.

On the other hand, the MS is aware of the pressure done by other countries regarding the vaccine process in Kosovo, in particular for the interventions Serbia makes to the citizens (mainly of the Serb community), inviting them to be vaccinated in Serbia. Furthermore, Serbia has made the distribution of a number of vaccines (mostly of Russia's Sputnik vaccines and others) in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in Montenegro and in the Republic of Northern Macedonia, but Kosovo citizens have been informed even earlier that the government of the Republic of Kosovo has been clear from the start that Kosovo citizens should be vaccinated with vaccines that have received approval from FDA, EMA and the WTO, rather than vaccines from Serbia and Russia.

Ensure the citizens that Kosovo has met all criteria required by different partners and mechanisms to provide the vaccine, wants to re-focus the fact that the priority for this mechanism has been states with a more severe epidemiology situation, while priority producers have given states that represent markets greater than Kosovo.

However, this has not discouraged any Commission officials for negotiating the vaccine against COVID-19, Committee to Prepare State Plan for Anti-Inocation COVID and partners to continue their daily engagement until the first doses of vaccines are achieved.

MS assures citizens that this commitment will be maximum, beyond any interest, in fulfilling the obligation to ensure the health of citizens, until the first doses we believe will happen soon and in completing the anti-inoculation programme. COVID-19.