The United States announced Monday that the Philippines would be among the countries to receive a portion of its 55 million donated COVID-19 vaccine doses.
“This is in addition to the Philippines’ allocation under the previous June 3 announcement of the first 25 million US vaccine doses to be shared globally, as pledged earlier by President [Joe] Biden to help end the pandemic,” it said.
A Reuters report said the Philippines will receive a total of 16 million vaccines from the US through the COVAX facility. The US will also give COVID-19 vaccines to the Philippines via direct sharing.
The report added roughly 75% of the 55 million doses are allocated to Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia, and Africa through the COVAX international vaccine-sharing program.
The plan fulfills President Joe Biden’s commitment to share 80 million US-made vaccines with countries around the world. The President sketched out his priorities for the first 25 million doses from that pledge earlier this month.
The United States has come under pressure to share more of its vaccine supply with countries that are still struggling with the deadly virus and its variants.
Philippines to receive millions of vaccines from US
With more and more Americans getting the shots, the White House increasingly has turned its attention to getting vaccines out internationally.
Of the 55 million remaining doses, some 41 million will be shared through COVAX, the White House said, with approximately 14 million going to Latin America and the Caribbean, some 16 million to Asia, and roughly 10 million to Africa.
The other 25%, or roughly 14 million doses, will be shared with “regional priorities,” including Colombia, Argentina, Iraq, Ukraine, the West Bank and Gaza.
White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the United States had faced logistical issues getting vaccine to other nations.
“We have plenty of doses to share with the world, but this is a Herculean logistical challenge,” she told reporters, noting safety and regulatory information had to be shared, proper storage temperatures for the vaccines had to be ensured, and language barriers at times had to be overcome.
“We have announced today where these doses are going. We will continue to announce as they land on the ground and as they are being shipped, and we’re looking forward to doing that as quickly as possible,” she said.
Reports with Reuters