Lahore, 9th May: Pakistan received its first batch of AstraZeneca vaccine doses through the Covax facility. According to a statement issued by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), the first shipment of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine via the Covax facility came to Pakistan on Saturday. As per reports, the first batch consisted of 1,238,400 vaccine doses and there would be 1,236,000 more doses arriving in a few days. The vaccine doses sent are meant to support the government’s drive to control the pandemic across the country. The statement by the NCOC said that the aim of the Covax facility is to supply Pakistan with enough doses to vaccinate 20% of the population, the allocations of which will start from June onwards. The statement further said that the AstraZeneca vaccine purchased by the government is meant to vaccinate frontline healthcare workers, senior citizens and other priority groups identified by NCOC. The French embassy in Pakistan announced on its Twitter account, “France is happily participating in the #COVAX facility with the first donation of 500,000 vaccine doses #TeamEurope.” France is happily participating in the #COVAX facility with a first donation of 500,000 vaccine doses #TeamEurope🇨🇵🇵🇰🇪🇺@EU_Commission @ForeignOfficePk https://t.co/mW87kZtrhN — France in Pakistan … Continue reading First batch of AstraZeneca vaccine reaches Pakistan via Covax facility