(Photo courtesy of BOC)
MANILA – The Bureau of Customs (BOC) on Monday reported that it has cleared 500,000 doses of Sinovac vaccines consigned to the Department of Health (DOH).
In a statement, the BOC-Port of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) said the vaccines underwent pre-arrival clearance process on Sunday through the NAIA One-Stop-Shop and were cleared for release within 15 minutes after arrival.
The vaccines arrived via Flight No. PR 361 from Beijing, China, at around 5 p.m. on Sunday.
Upon arrival, the shipment was immediately transferred to the Metropac facility in Marikina City to ensure the integrity and security of the vaccines prior to distribution across the nation.
For his part, Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero assured the immediate processing of vaccines in support of the Covid-19 vaccination program of the national government while protecting the border against fraudulent attempts to import unregistered vaccines and related medical goods.
The bureau has so far cleared and released over 3.02 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines imported by the Department of Health.
On the other hand, NAIA District Collector Carmelita Talusan said they continue to undertake active coordination and cooperation with concerned government agencies to further streamline and improve clearance processes of vaccines and related medical goods. (PNA)
