Lanka seeks $100-mn IMF loan to procure Covid vax

Colombo, September 22

Advertisement

Sri Lanka has decided to ask for a $100 million loan from the IMF to procure 14 million doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine and finance other vaccination programme related costs, it was announced here on Wednesday.

“Minister of Health Keheliya Rambukwella had proposed that Sri Lanka obtain the additional loan grant of $100 million under the programme of strategic preparation and response to Covid-19,” the government said in a statement. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has agreed to grant a supplementary loan of $100 million to assist Sri Lanka’s Covid-19 response, it added.

The decision made was to obtain the funds to procure 14 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine and also finance other vaccination programme related costs. The minister for pharmaceuticals Channa Jayasumana told Parliament on Tuesday that the government had already vaccinated over 50 per cent of the island nation’s 21 million population. “Our target is to vaccinate over 75 per cent of the population within the next few months,” he said.

The public health inspectors said those below the age of 30 had shown reluctance to get vaccinated. Only around 35 per cent of them had received the jabs by September 20. — PTI

Biden doubles vax shots donation

Washington: President Joe Biden announced on Wednesday that the US is doubling its purchase of Pfizer’s shots to 1 billion doses as he embraces the goal of vaccinating 70 per cent of the global population within the next year. The US purchase of another 500 million shots brings its total vaccination commitment to more than 1.1 billion doses through 2022. AP

Global decline in new cases: WHO

Geneva: The number of new Covid cases continued to fall last week, with 3.6 million new cases reported globally, down from 4 million new infections the previous week, the WHO said. In its latest update on the pandemic released on Tuesday, WHO said there were major decreases in cases in two regions: a 22 per cent fall in the Middle East and a 16 per cent drop in Southeast Asia. The UN health agency said there were just under 60,000 deaths in the past week, a 7 per cent decline. AP

Curbs in China city

Beijing: China’s northeastern city of Harbin, with 10 million population, went into a semi-shutdown after reporting new locally transmitted Covid-19 cases for the first time since early February. Three of 16 new local cases reported in China for September 21 were in Harbin. Reuters