Kovacs to supply 1.36 million vaccines to Korea in the first half

<Anchor> KOVAX, an

international vaccine co-purchase organization, announced a vaccine distribution plan.

In addition to the 60,000 Pfizer vaccines already known in Korea, 1.3 million AstraZeneca are expected to enter within the first half of the year.

Reporter Park Soo-jin on the report.

<Reporter>

KOVAX revealed its vaccine distribution plan through a video briefing in the early morning (4th).

KOVAX will supply 335 million batches to 145 countries by the first half of this year.

Of these, 366 million batches are produced in Korea and India, AstraZeneca, and 1.2 million batches are Pfizer.

Pfizer vaccine was first distributed to 18 countries, including Korea, with cryogenic refrigeration facilities.

[Frederic Christensen/Vice-Chairman of the Federation for Infectious Disease Preparation and Innovation: Today is a very important moment for Kovacs, and now governments around the world can begin preparing to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine to their own citizens.]

Korea has 60,000 Pfizer vaccines per unit. Coming in the quarter, AstraZeneca vaccine will also be available in 2,587 million doses, which can fit 1.3 million people.

North Korea will be able to receive 996 million AstraZeneca vaccines produced in India.

There have been reports from foreign media that North Korea wants to receive vaccines through Kovacs, but this is the first time it has been officially confirmed.

North Korea has been classified as a low-income country with free or low-cost vaccines provided by donor countries.

Advanced countries such as the United States and Europe were not included in this plan announced by Kovacs.