MANILA (Reuters) – The Philippines will receive its first COVID-19 vaccines over the weekend, which will allow it to begin the vaccination program next week, a senior official said on Thursday.
Despite having the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in Asia, the Philippines will be the last country in Southeast Asia to receive its initial set of vaccines.
The delivery of 600,000 doses of Sinovac Biotech vaccines, donated by China, will arrive on Sunday, said Harry Roque, spokesman for President Rodrigo Duterte.
“It starts on Monday because our countrymen are excited,” he said of the vaccination program.
Among the first to be inoculated will be a hospital worker who lost his parents to the coronavirus, as well as a tricycle, said Roque.
The Philippines ordered 25 million doses of Sinovac and was due to receive its first batch on February 23. That was the postponed emergency use authorization was only given this week.
In addition to Sinovac, 10,000 doses of a vaccine developed by Sinopharm in China will arrive soon, under “compassionate use” for Duterte’s security detachment. AstraZeneca doses will arrive in March, said Roque.
“I have to admit, if we insist on Western brands, we will still wait for their arrival,” he added.
Duterte, who sought stronger ties with China and has a strained relationship with many Western countries, said earlier that he wanted to purchase COVID-19 vaccines from China or Russia.
The vaccination program will be crucial to the Philippines’ efforts to revive its economy, which fell by a record 9.5% last year due to rigid and prolonged restrictions that affected consumer spending and saw major job losses.
(Reporting by Neil Jerome Morales; Editing by Martin Petty)