(COLOMBO, LANKAPUVATH) – Dr. Prasanna Gunasena, Chairman of the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation (SPC) says by controlling the spread of COVID-19 the number of patients can be reduced by the end of next month.
Dr. Gunasena says that the necessary background has already been prepared to give all the required number of Covid vaccines by the end of next December and to successfully end the Covid suppression in the country.
The Chairman of the SPC said according to the Epidemiology Unit, the country needs 29 million doses of the COVID vaccine and it has been confirmed to bring 32 million doses of vaccines including 14 million doses of Sinopharm vaccine, 13 million doses of Sputnik V vaccine, and 5 million Pfizer vaccines to Sri Lanka this year for vaccination of people over 20 years of age.
He said that arrangements have been made to import the stock of vaccines before December 31.
Dr. Prasanna Gunasena made these remarks addressing a meeting of the Covid Suppression Task Force chaired by President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa on the 21st.
Dr. Gunasena said that if that stock of vaccines imported, there will be 3 million more doses than the country needs, adding that 1 million had already been vaccinated.
“We have a situation where we can give 33.2 million vaccine doses. We need 29 million vaccines. After we receive 3 million doses of Sinopharm vaccine and 1 million doses of Sputnik V in June we would know that by the end of June we will be able to vaccinate a considerable number of people in Sri Lanka. Accordingly, we can reduce the spread of the disease by the end of June,” Dr. Gunasena said.
President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has prepared the background for all vaccinations this year. He said that the country could be gradually opened up based on the number of vaccinators in the future if the situation was gradually brought under control until then.
