Japan provides three million US Dollars
Strengthening delivery of immunisation programme
Government of Japan has provided nearly three million US dollars through the UNICEF to support the cold chain system in Sri Lanka and strengthen delivery of immunisation services, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Japanese Embassy in Colombo said yesterday.
Sri Lanka was currently rolling out vaccinations against the pandemic for prioritised groups, including the elderly population above 60 years of age in highrisk areas impacted by COVID-19.
“As a long-standing friend of Sri Lanka, it is our great honour to provide emergency grant assistance through UNICEF in our joint combat against COVID-19. We believe that the procurement of cold chain equipment and relevant technical assistance will ensure equitable access and swift roll-out of vaccination across the country.”, said Sugiyama Akira, Ambassador of Japan to Sri Lanka.
“This new, timely contribution from Japan will be used for the procurement of cold chain equipment, including walk-in cold rooms, ice lined refrigerators and vaccine carriers. In addition, the grant will support the operation and maintenance of the cold chain equipment, effective vaccine management as well as expansion of temperature monitoring system to all districts,” it is said.
“Such contributions from the Government of Japan are crucial in our joint efforts with the Ministry of Health to support the delivery of COVID-19 vaccination services and further strengthen Sri Lanka’s health system”, said Emma Brigham, representative of the UNICEF in Sri Lanka.
Through the COVAX Facility, in March, UNICEF brought in the first batch of 264,000 doses of the Oxford Astrazeneca ‘Covishield’ vaccines which were now being rolled out in line with the National Vaccine Deployment Plan of the Ministry of Health.
“This support from the Government of Japan comes as a boost to Sri Lanka’s ongoing efforts to strengthen the overall immunisation system, including to receive, store and roll-out the COVID-19 vaccination programme.