Covid jabs
DGHS chief vows action in instances of stealing Covid jabs
Action will be taken if any Health Department officials are found involved in the recent selling of Covid-19 jabs in Dhaka city and elsewhere in the country, Director General of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) ABM Khurshid Alam warned on Sunday.
He said this while talking to UNB during a visit to National Institute of Neurosciences & Hospital in Dhaka.
He said vaccine stealing is a sensitive issue and investigation is going on regarding this.
Also read: Take actions against Cumilla councilor for pushing Covid jabs: Probe
His warning came days after police held Bijoy Krishna Talukdar, owner of ‘Doridro Paribar Seba’ clinic in city’s Dakshinkhan area for illegally administering Moderna Covid-19 jabs.
Take actions against Cumilla councilor for pushing Covid jabs: Probe
A probe committee formed over the controversial incident of administering the Covid vaccine jabs in a councilor's office found the ward councilor and supervisor of the vaccination center guilty and recommended taking action against them.
District Civil Surgeon Dr Mir Mobarak Hossain said the committee has recommended taking action against the involved Cumilla City Corporation (CCC) Councilor Nadia Nasrin and supervisor of the center Md Muzibur Rahman Saturday.
The investigation report was sent to Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Department Thursday through CCC and the Director General of the Health Directorate was informed about it, Dr Mobarak said.
Nadia Nasrin, the councillor representing wards 4, 5 & 6, has been accused of giving Moderna vaccine doses to 125 people without any authorisation from the health authorities.
Also read: Bangladesh to get 781,440 AstraZeneca doses from Japan Saturday
According to the Civil Surgeon office, on August 9, the vaccination drive was suspended at Harun Government Primary School in ward number 6 owing to some chaos and clashes.
Meanwhile councilor Nasrin took some vials of Covid shots and syringes from the center to her office, determined to carry on the vaccination drive, where people were being administered with the first dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine.
On August 12, immediately after some photos of the councilor pushing jabs went viral on social media, a three member probe committee was formed convened by the coordinator of Civil Surgeon office Hasan Mahmud Iqbal.
Also read: Over 1.6 million AstraZeneca doses received from Japan
The committee was asked to submit the report by August 14, but it was submitted on August 18 after increasing the time.
Nadia claims that she is a certified vaccine pusher, and no one who received the jab from her has made any complaints and it caused no harm to any of the jab receivers.
Third consignment of AstraZeneca jabs from Japan to reach Dhaka Tuesday
The third consignment of AstraZeneca vaccine from Japan will arrive in Dhaka on Tuesday.
A flight of All Nippon Airways (ANA), carrying an amount of 6,16,780 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine, left the Terminal-1, Narita airport at 21:15 hrs on Monday.
The consignment is set to reach Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport Dhaka on Tuesday by Cathay Pacific cargo flight, officials said.
Also read: Bangladesh receives around 8 lakh doses of AstraZeneca vaccine
With the third consignment, the total number of dispatched vaccines from Japan as of now stands at 16,43,300.
HC seeks govt decision on Covid jabs to pregnant women
The High Court on Monday asked the government to let the court know within 72 hours its decision about providing Covid jabs to pregnant women.
The HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim passed the order after hearing a writ petition seeking steps to provide Covid jabs for pregnant women on priority basis.
It also asked the attorney general to contact the health and family welfare ministry, Directorate General of Health Services and National National Technical Advisory Committee (NTAC) in this regard.
Also read: Preparations underway to vaccinate 1 crore people by next week: Minister
On July 31, four lawyers filed a petition seeking necessary steps from the government to provide Covid vaccine to expectant women on priority basis.
The High Court also said the government is needed to take a specific decision within 72 hours.
The Court also asked the attorney general to contact the authorities concerned as they declared the decision formally within this period.
Also read: Do I need to get tested for COVID-19 if I’m vaccinated?
“We do not provide any formal order as our health minister said that they will take decisions about the pregnant women. We hope they will announce a decision soon. But the attorney general should contact them,” said the HC.
Advocate Mohammad Humayun Kabir stood for the petitioner while deputy attorney general Samarendra Nath Biswas represented the state.
Man who 'got three back-to-back Covid jabs' under observation
A man who claimed to have received three consecutive doses of the Covid-19 vaccine Tuesday, has been kept under observation at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU).
A three member probe body, led by a professor of the hospital’s medicine department, has been set up to investigate if Omar Faruque really received three shots of the vaccine, BSMMU director Brigadier General Md Najrul Islam told UNB.
“We have visited Faruque on Thursday morning. He was not showing the general reaction of fever or cold evident in vaccine recipients. There was no mark of receiving three jabs on his hand either," the director said.
Also read: Kushtia man ends up 'fully vaccinated' in ten minutes
A psychologist has been included in the probe body to see if Faruque’s mental condition is fine, said Md Najrul.
Currently, all the Covid-19 vaccines being distributed in Bangladesh are two-shot jabs. And a gap of three to six weeks is a must between the first and second doses.
On Tuesday, Omar, a Bangladeshi who works in Saudi Arabia, claimed to have received three consecutive doses of a Covid vaccine from three different booths at BSMMU. His claims triggered debates across online platforms.
Later, BSMMU held a press briefing and said that Faruque’s claim was "false".
Also read: Man dies while waiting in a long line to give Covid sample, says doctor
Meanwhile, the news of Omar being abducted from his house in Fatullah by some unidentified miscreants went viral on Wednesday.
His sister Farzana Akter later said that her brother contacted them that evening to say that he was kept under observation at BSMMU.
Bangladesh to go for Covid vaccine coproduction soon: FM
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Saturday said Bangladesh will go for coproduction of Covid-19 vaccines soon, emphasizing that there is no alternative to production of vaccines locally.
"It's a coproduction. They (partner countries) will send it in bulk and we’ll do other things here - bottling, labeling and finishing," he told reporters after receiving the first consignment of 2,45,200 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Japan.
Dr Momen said the countries that went for coproduction of vaccines are doing well.
A cargo flight of Cathay Pacific Airways carried the vaccine doses that landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.
Also read: India working to resume vaccine export to Bangladesh, reiterates Doraiswami
Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen, Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Naoki Ito, Health Services Division Secretary Lokman Hossain Miah and personal physician of the Prime Minister Professor Dr ABM Abdullah were present.
The vaccine doses came under the COVAX facility.
Dhaka to receive 2.45 lakh AstraZeneca jabs from Tokyo Saturday
Some 2,45,200 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine are scheduled to arrive here on Saturday from Japan.
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen will receive the vaccine doses that will come under COVAX facility.
A Cathay Pacific Airways flight will carry the vaccine doses that will land at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in the afternoon on the day.
Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Ito Naoki on Friday said Japan will provide in total 3 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine to Bangladesh.
Dhaka calls for tech transfer & IPR waiver to produce Covid jabs
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen has called for meaningful transfer of technology, access to aid for trade and intellectual property rights waiver so that least developed countries (LDCs) can also produce Covid-19 vaccines and other life-saving medicines.
He was speaking at a virtual programme on enhancing international trade and regional integration for the LDCs, held at the United Nations headquarters on Thursday.
Although the Istanbul Programme of Action for the LDCs announced its target in 2011 of doubling the share of these countries in global trade in one decade, Dr Momen said that "unfortunately in the past 10 years, the share of the LDCs in global trade has rather decreased".
The Foreign Minister also stressed the need for South-South and Triangular Cooperation in the area of trade and technological cooperation for benefitting the LDCs. He also highlighted the catalytic role that aid for trade can play in helping the least developed countries.
Also read: COVID-19: Bangladesh to receive over 1 lakh Pfizer vaccine on Sunday
He referred to the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, which had set a target to increase the share of the LDCs, and flagged that the target was yet to be fulfilled.
Dr Momen referred to the ongoing pandemic and its impact on the economy of the LDCs and advocated for providing support to such countries in the area of digital infrastructure, in particular e-commerce.
He also referred to the sharp decrease in the income of the LDCs from services sector during the pandemic, saying that because of the dependence mostly on the tourism sector, "many of the least developed economies are suffering now".
He also called for enabling safe, regular and orderly mobility from the LDCs in this regard.
Dr Momen also demanded immediate implementation of all decisions of the WTO Ministerial Meetings in favour of the LDCs, including removal of non-tariff and different standards-related barriers.
He stressed on the importance of transfer of technologies to the LDCs, as provided for in WTO rules to address the digital divide between the developed countries and the least developed ones.
The Foreign Minister also flagged the importance of affordable access to Covid vaccines by the LDCs.
Also read: Vaccine inequality in India sends many falling through gaps
He highlighted that there was a huge shortage of vaccines in the LDCs, and suggested that these countries should be provided with financial and technical support for producing Covid jabs and other life-saving medicines.
Dr Momen also called on the developed and developing countries to help the graduating LDCs, and stressed the need for continued support to them for 12 years after graduation.
India's Serum to produce Covid jabs overseas: Report
Unable to cope with the growing demand for its Covid-19 jabs in India and abroad, the Serum Institute is reportedly planning to soon start the production of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine in other countries as well.
Serum's Covishield is being widely used in both India and Bangladesh's mega inoculation drives. Bangladesh has inked a deal with Serum to buy 30 million doses of Covishield, but a recent surge in Covid cases in India has made the delivery of the remaining doses uncertain.
Read Will soon come out of uncertainty over vaccine availability: Minister
Serum's chief executive officer Adar Poonawalla revealed his plans to set up vaccine
production units outside India in an interview with The Times newspaper. "There's going to be an announcement in the next few days," he told the British daily.
Poonawalla hoped to increase the Serum Institute's production capacity from the existing 2.5 billion to 3 billion doses a year within six months, the newspaper reported.
Read Bangladesh approves emergency use of Russian Sputnik V vaccine
India is currently witnessing a ferocious second wave of Covid-19. On Saturday, the country registered a record four lakh cases in a span of 24 hours, for the first time after reporting over three lakh daily infections for nine days in a row.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi rolled out the world's largest Covid vaccination drive on January 16. Covishield and local company Bharat Biotech's Covaxin are currently being given to citizens. However, several states in India have run out of Covid vaccines.
Read PVA bats for suspension of intellectual property rights on Covid jabs
PVA bats for suspension of intellectual property rights on Covid jabs
The People's Vaccine Alliance (PVA) in Asia has called on Japan, Singapore and South Korea to support a proposal seeking a temporary suspension of intellectual property rights on Covid-19 vaccines, a move it believes will pave the way for improved access to jabs across the continent.
The 'temporary TRIPS Waiver’ proposal is slated for discussion at the WTO’s general council meeting on April 30.
In its letter, PVA also urged the leaders of the three Asian nations to ensure that pharmaceutical giants and rich country governments voluntarily join the WHO-led Covid-19 Technology Access Pool.
The letter has been signed by 100 organisations, including Actionaid, APCASO, Asia Dalit Rights Forum, Asia Pacific Alliance for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, Asian Peoples Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD, Oxfam international, South Asia Alliance for Poverty Eradication and Fight Inequality Alliance India, according to a release.
Compared to the terrifying speed at which the virus is spreading and mutating, as most recently being seen in India, scaling up global Covid-19 vaccination access and inoculation have been painfully slow, the letter read.
Also read: Bangladesh, China, others call for avoiding vaccine nationalism
"Most of the world’s population, especially in middle- and lower-income countries, lacks access to the vaccine. At the speed with which it is proceeding, it will take decades to vaccinate all who need it.
"The Covid-19 vaccines are owned by big pharmaceutical corporations who are refusing to share the science and technology that could speed up mass production and distribution for the entire planet," it added.
“No single corporation will ever be able to produce enough vaccine doses quickly for everyone who needs it. If history has taught us anything, it is that pharmaceutical corporations create and protect monopolies in order to maximise profits instead of improving public health. We have seen this in the past with vital medicines for illnesses like HIV or cancer that have been priced far too high, out of reach for most people”, said Karyn Kaplan of Asia Catalyst.
"A temporary waiver of World Trade Organization (WTO) intellectual property rules during the COVID-19 pandemic, proposed by South Africa and India and supported by more than 100 WTO member states and numerous health experts worldwide, is a vital, necessary and urgent step to bring an end to this pandemic," the Alliance said.
Also Read: Bangladesh keen to work with China for research, production of Covid vaccine
WTO TRIPS waiver must be combined with ensuring vaccine know-how and technology is shared openly. This can be achieved through the World Health Organization COVID-19 Technology Access Pool.
These actions would expand global manufacturing capacity, unhindered by industry monopolies that are driving the dire supply shortages blocking vaccine access, according to PVA
“When the pharmacy of the world is gasping for breath, keeping monopoly over vaccine science for purpose of profit is immoral, collective failure and self-defeating," said Mustafa Talpur, campaign and advocacy manager of Oxfam international in Asia.
All these roadblocks to control Covid-19 spread are surmountable, the Alliance said.
"The Asia region has a world-class generic pharmaceutical industry with a little more shared technology and know-how, Asia-based companies can quickly support new manufacturing capacity in other countries, thereby reducing the negative impact of COVID and improving response capacity for future pandemics."
Countries in Asia, including China, India, Thailand, and others have demonstrated capacity to produce vaccines.
“Vaccine equity will directly improve health outcomes, as no one is safe until everyone is safe. It is key to the enjoyment of human rights and is equally vital to a comprehensive economic rebuilding out of inequality, poverty and hunger. There is no time to lose! This is an urgent call for a solidaristic, humanitarian and accountable response to save millions of Asian people and their futures”, said Sandeep Chachra, Executive Director of Actionaid Association India.