from Statista.com
— this post authored by Katharina Buchholz
Vaccination campaigns against the coronavirus are underway in Asia with almost two dozen countries having started inoculations on the continent. In many countries the start has been slow.
China and Russia, which developed their own vaccines, have managed to vaccinate a larger part of their populations than most of their regional neighbors. Yet, at a rate of 3-4 doses administered per 100 people, the campaigns are also still in the early stages.
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Having started vaccinations on Jan 16, India’s rollout has been somewhat slower at currently 1.1 doses administered per 100 people despite the fact that the country has also developed its own shot and is currently producing the University of Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine under the name Covishield. Some Indians have shunned the locally developed variety Covaxin since third stage trial results are still outstanding.
Chinese and Indian vaccine diplomacy have meanwhile given some countries a head start. The Seychelles have used China’s Sinopharm vaccine since January 11 and have now already given out 81 doses per 100 people, also using Covishield from India. The Maldives, which like the Seychelles received the Covishield vaccine as a gift, counted almost 23 doses per 100 people since starting the campaign on Feb 1, according to Our World in Data. The donation effort of the Indian-produced University of Oxford vaccine is also benefiting Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, which had given out more than 2 doses per 100 people as of March 2. China has donated its vaccines to Cambodia, Laos and Pakistan, while Indonesia is a paying customer to the Chinese.
Among those who are starting mass vaccinations later are Laos and Vietnam, which have experienced few COVID-19 cases. The Philippines, one of the most affected countries in the region with more than 580,000 cumulative cases, started efforts Monday. 600,000 donated doses of the Chinese Sinovac variety arrived in the country last week after the vaccine received emergency authorization. Around 480,000 doses of the AstraZeneca variety are expected this week through the COVAX initiative.
More than 100,000 Pfizer/BioNTech doses have also been allotted to the Philippines through COVAX. But these can only be delivered after the country has enacted a framework for compensating those who might potentially suffer from side effects of the vaccine. The mandatory condition that will absolve Pfizer of direct responsibility highlights the bureaucratic hurdles of receiving some coronavirus vaccines.
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