Ecuador will receive doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine through the COVAX mechanism

Ecuador is part of the list of countries that will receive the AstraZeneca vaccine against COVID-19, within the international COVAX mechanism.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) reported today that COVAX, the coalition led by WHO and Gavi to ensure equitable access to vaccines, notified countries of the Americas about the estimated dose allocation for the first phase of delivery of the dose.

36 countries and territories participating in COVAX received the letter with information on the estimated number of doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine they could receive as of the second half of February.

AstraZeneca’s vaccine is still under scrutiny by WHO for emergency use approval, which is expected to occur in the next few days.

In Ecuador, the National Agency for Health Regulation, Control and Surveillance (Arcsa) issued the import authorization for this vaccine on January 22. The authorities explained that this vaccine has the advantage of being cheaper and easier to store: it can be stored at the temperature of a refrigerator, that is, between 2 and 8 degrees, unlike the Moderna and Pfizer / BioNTech vaccines, which they can only be stored long-term at very low temperatures down to -70ºC.

The number of doses and the delivery schedule are still subject to the emergency use list, the capacity to manufacture the production, as well as the establishment of supply agreements between the producers, PAHO and UNICEF. It is estimated that about 35.3 million doses will reach the region in this first stage.

The countries that will receive the vaccine began the process of preparing for the receipt and deployment of vaccines. With the communication of COVAX, on the start of the delivery of the first doses, the countries must guarantee that they are ready to use them.

PAHO reported that the region of the Americas will need to immunize approximately 500 million people to control the pandemic.

Ecuador, at the moment, has received 8.000 doses of the 86.000 agreed with the pharmaceutical company Pfizer. Authorities have not yet reported when the rest of the doses will arrive.