(PNA file photo)
MANILA – The National Capital Region (NCR) and six provinces will be needing some 3.3 million doses of Covid-19 jabs monthly until herd immunity is achieved by November or December this year.
Metro Cebu and Metro Davao, on the other hand, should get more or less 300,000 to 350,000 doses each month.
A steady supply of coronavirus vaccines will be the key to the government's goal to achieve herd immunity, particularly in high-risk areas, Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., the Chief Implementer of the National Task Force (NTF) Against Covid-19, said Tuesday at the Palace press briefing.
The government is focusing its vaccination program in the NCR, Bulacan, Laguna, Cavite, Rizal, Batangas, Pampanga, Metro Cebu, and Metro Davao, all considered high-risk areas.
"We took the different target population of these areas and we identified about 70 percent of the population and we computed this, we divided it within six months or 180 days," Galvez said in Filipino.
The government has allocated PHP82.5 billion for the procurement of vaccines, with PHP58 billion borrowed through the Asian Development Bank, World Bank, and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
"We have already spent about PHP4.5 million for Sinovac jabs and advance payment for the Gamaleya vaccines, and also our advance for Moderna. We also have an ongoing financing and we haven't released it yet," he explained.
The government targets to vaccinate 50 to 70 million this year to achieve herd immunity. (PNA)
