Nangula Shejavali
14 October 2009
THE Ministry of Health and Social Services has indicated to the World Health Organisation that it is ready to receive vaccines for the H1N1 flu, should donations be made available to the country.
This was revealed yesterday by WHO Country Representative, Dr Magda Robalo, who told The Namibian that Health Minister Richard Kamwi had responded positively to a letter from the WHO's Director General to developing countries, asking whether they were willing to receive donations of the vaccine, or whether they could procure their own stocks.
Kamwi confirmed that he had written a letter to the WHO Director General, Dr Margaret Chan, but said he could not comment on the matter before receiving a response from her.
He appealed to Namibians to stay calm and said all the necessary logistics were in place.
It is understood that in Kamwi's response to the Chan, he indicated that operational logistic costs with respect to receiving flu vaccine donations would be borne by Namibia.
He also noted that the country would be able to meet all WHO requirements with regard to distributing and administering the vaccine, and that the necessary processes to register the vaccine in the country would be expedited to ensure that administrative processes do not bar citizens from accessing donated stocks.
It is unclear, however, whether Namibia indicated any ability to procure its own stock, and what the cost would come to.
A September media report quoted the director of the Initiative for Vaccine Research at the WHO, Marie-Paule Kieny, as saying that the vaccine would cost countries "between $2,50 and $20 per dose, based on their ability to pay".
Donations for use in developing countries have been announced by the US in conjunction with other wealthy countries, who together have pledged to make 10 per cent of their vaccine purchases available to developing countries.
It is for this reason that developing countries were approached to indicate their willingness and readiness to receive the vaccine.
Robalo said at this point it is not clear how many countries have requested donations of the vaccine, as responses from other developing countries are still being compiled.
In the meantime, she noted that the WHO continued to consult with a number of countries to assess their needs.
Kieny was yesterday quoted as saying that Chan would most likely approve a list of countries for the donations by yesterday, and that vaccines could be made available to the countries as soon as November.
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