ILOILO City – Of the 600,000 doses of the vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) ordered by the city government from British pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca, 45,000 doses – or 7.5 percent – have so far been delivered since July.
According to Mayor Jerry Treñas, the first delivery in July was for 17,000 doses, followed by 28,000 doses earlier this month.
The city government has so far paid for 30 percent of its total order.
Treñas said delivery is slow because AstraZeneca has so many orders to meet, including those placed by private companies.
The first delivery was all used up already. The August delivery, on the other hand, may be used in the ongoing barangay-based vaccination, according to Treñas.
The city’s chief executive signed a tripartite agreement with AstraZeneca and the National Task Force (NTF) against COVID-19 for the vaccine procurement early this year.
To achieve herd immunity, the city has to inoculate 70 percent of its total population or about 525,000 residents.
As of Aug. 28, the city had fully vaccinated 27.25 percent or 143,043 individuals.
Meanwhile, 123,041 are waiting for their second dose./PN
