The Ministry of Health yesterday said it had not procured COVID-19 vaccines from illegal entities or anyone in trouble with the law.
In a defence of its vaccine purchases it was responding to concerns raised on Tuesday by Leader of the Opposition Joseph Harmon that the purchase of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine from the company of Dubai’s Sheik Ahmed Dalmook Al-Maktoum had put Guyana in proximity to a wanted Pakistani national and a Norwegian fraudster. Harmon had replied on a report by a Norwegian news outlet on the two individuals.
“At no time did Guyana procure vaccines from any illegal entity or anyone in trouble with legal authorities anywhere. At no time did Guyana access vaccines secretly from anyone. In every instance, the Ministry of Health has followed the established process and has established legally binding contracts to ensure the timely delivery of these vaccines.
“Guyana has always announced prices we have paid whenever we have procured vaccines. The Minister of Health has made pronouncements on prices in and out of Parliament. His Excellency President Irfaan Ali has also announced prices Guyana has paid. It has never been a secret that Guyana paid US$22 per dose of the Sputnik V vaccine and US$17 per dose of Sinopharm. These prices include all associated cost, including ground and air transport”, the statement said.
It rejected what it said was the Leader of the Opposition’s malicious statement.
“We are disappointed that the Leader of the Opposition believes that the price Guyana paid for Sputnik V vaccines is overpriced. When he admitted in parliament that he could not get a better price, the Ministry of Health will never believe that saving the lives of our people is an overpriced option. Guyana has sought to procure directly from the Russian Sovereign Fund, but with no firm commitments on a delivery schedule, Guyana opted to utilize a supplier. It was a good investment for our people at the time. It remains a good investment at this time. The Ministry of Health has no apologies in this regard”, a statement from the ministry said.
The Ministry said it has followed the standard operating procedures for procurement, always obtaining approval from the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board.
“In terms of the single-sourcing of vaccines, there is no availability from different sources that permit open tendering. Guyana has sought to procure from any of the entities or countries with vaccines approved for use in those countries. We will continue to do so and procure vaccines from sources with authentic availability”, the ministry said.
The ministry added that by any standard, the Guyana COVID-19 Vac-cination programme has been successful so far. As of June 15, 2021, Guyana has vaccinated 223,659 persons (46% of the adult population) with the first dose of COVID-19 vaccines. Guyana has also fully vaccinated 92,157 persons (17% of the adult population) against COVID-19.
It said that the President has mandated that the Ministry of Health strive to vaccinate all adults by the end of 2021.
“In this regard, the Government of Guyana will not be distracted in its effort to ensure Guyana attains fully-vaccinated status for adults in 2021. The Government of Guyana has reiterated on many occasions that Guyana will not be deterred by vaccine price or other barriers. The Government has declared that it will invest as necessary to protect the Guyanese people”, the statement added.
To ensure sufficient supplies, the Ministry said it held bilateral discussions with countries, namely India, China, Russia, the US, Kuwait, the UAE and the European Union. In addition, Guyana had bilateral talks with manufacturers AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson and Johnson, SinoPharm, Covaxin and the Russian Direct Investment Fund.
It said in all these engagements, it became clear that Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson and Johnson were not in a position to supply vaccines to Guyana in 2021. It became clear that any vaccine available will be from the WHO’s COVAX, India, China and Russia.
“Guyana was not willing to wait on Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson and Johnson. Clearly, for immediate vaccination of the Guyanese people, our immediate reaction was to seek other options. Under these circumstances, Guy-ana approached countries like China, Russia, and India to seek direct procurement. These discussions are still ongoing and resulted in an agreement with China for 100,000 doses. It was during these discussions that an opportunity to procure 400,000 doses of Sputnik through the UAE presented itself. Guyana took the opportunity to procure Sputnik vaccines under this arrangement while keeping our options open for procurement from other sources”, the ministry said.
Al-Maktoum had visited Guyana last year Novem-ber in a blaze of publicity and ostensibly to invest in various sectors here including agriculture. There has been no further word on this.
“We became aware that Sheik Dalmook’s company was a supplier and we approached it and was successful in getting the required number of doses we sought,” Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony explained to Stabroek News on Tuesday as he emphasized that when in a critical situation with demand shortages, the first priority is security compared to negotiating for cheaper prices, as the lives of citizens cannot be calculated in dollars and cents.
