COLOMBO, Feb 16 (NNN-XINHUA) – Sri Lankan President, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, instructed health authorities to start vaccinating members of the general public in the country’s Western Province with the Oxford Astra Zeneca against the COVID-19 virus.
Officials said, they started vaccinating those who are at high risk of exposure to the virus, such as port workers, private hospital staff and even garbage collectors, who are based in the Western Province.
All members of Parliament, along with Parliamentary staff, will be vaccinated from today with the Astra Zeneca vaccines.
Sri Lanka started vaccinating 250,000 frontline workers in the health sector and the military on Jan 29. It received 500,000 doses of Astra Zeneca from India.
Sri Lanka is likely to receive 1.8 million more doses of the vaccine under the World Health Organisation’s COVAX facility, which has pledged to provide four million doses free of charge to the Sri Lankan government.
The doses are expected to arrive in the country by the end of the month.– NNN-XINHUA
