Bangladesh has sought two million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine from Canada on an emergency basis to complete the second dose of vaccination.
Foreign minister AK Abdul Momen came up with the request on Tuesday during a meeting with Benoit Préfontaine, Canadian High Commissioner to Bangladesh.
The main point of the negotiations was the possibility of receiving AstraZeneca vaccine from Canada to meet up immediate second dose vaccine requirements in Bangladesh.
“Bangladesh acted fast on collecting vaccine by concluding the agreement with the Serum Institute of India to procure 30 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine,” said AK Abdul Momen.
“But now it is in the difficult situation as only 10.2 million doses of vaccine have been received from India, and the prospect of getting more has got bleak due to the ongoing massive Covid-19 outbreak in India,” said the minister.
He, stating the emergency need of 1.6 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine to provide second doses, underscored that this is at present a high priority for Bangladesh.
Referring to Canadian Procurement Minister Anita Anand’s statement on the probable distribution of excess stockpiles of AstraZeneca vaccine among developing countries, Momen urged the High Commissioner to pursue his government so that Bangladesh receives at least two million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Canada on an emergency basis.
He also underscored that such a supply of vaccine should be directly sent to Bangladesh, as has been done for some other countries like Pakistan, rather than through the COVAX programme of the World Health Organization (WHO).
He also proposed that Canada may help vaccinate forcibly displaced Rohingyas in Bangladesh separately.
In response to the call, Benoit Préfontaine assured that he will follow up with the government about Bangladesh’s request to provide two million doses of vaccine immediately.
It is also being followed up with the Canadian government by Bangladesh High Commission in Ottawa.
Momen thanked Canada for its continued strong political and humanitarian support for the Rohingya crisis, underscoring that the sustainable return of the Rohingyas to Myanmar is the solution.
He also reiterated Bangladesh’s expectation that Canada would extend Duty-Free Quota Free (DFQF) access to Bangladeshi products till 2027, and also would commence negotiating a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) or Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) with Bangladesh soon.
Benoit said that Canada would continue its humanitarian support for displaced Rohingyas and host communities at the same scale for the next three years, as was reflected in their budgetary framework for the next three years.
He also underscored that Canada is willing to enhance its economic cooperation with Bangladesh, including in areas of trade and investment.
