As part of a pledge to deliver COVID-9 vaccines to developing countries, Germany will deliver COVID-19 vaccines to Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

Deputy government spokeswoman, Ulrike Demmer, told a news conference in Berlin on August 9 that as part of Germany's commitment to the UN's COVAX initiative, Germany has begun shipping surplus COVID vaccines, including AstraZeneca, according to Deutsche Welle (DW).

She said the first 1.3 million AstraZeneca doses were being delivered to Sudan (357,600 doses), Ethiopia (271,200 doses), Afghanistan (213,600 doses), Tajikistan (100,800 doses), and Uzbekistan (355,200 doses).

Demmer said Berlin has promised to donate at least 30 million doses of coronavirus vaccines to the least-developed low-income countries by the end of 2021, with more shipments to continue in the coming weeks.

The vaccines will be supplied primarily through the global COVAX facility, which aims to provide countries around the world with equitable access to safe and effective vaccines once licensed and registered. This initiative is jointly coordinated by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation (CEPI), the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The vaccines to be supplied will be the Swedish-manufactured AstraZeneca, obtained by Berlin under contracts with London, DW added.

Recall, 69 new officially confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Tajikistan as of the evening of August 9, bringing a total number of COVID-19 cases officially reported in the country since April30, 2020, when the infection index cases were officially confirmed in Dushanbe and Khujand, to 15,270.  

The Ministry of Health and Social Protection of the Population (MoHSPP) says no new coronavirus-linked deaths were reported in the country yesterday, and the number of officially confirmed cases of the coronavirus-linked deaths in Tajikistan remains the same since April 30, 2020 – 122. 

The covid vaccination campaign is under way in Tajikistan.  As of August 4, 1,013,808 people have been vaccinated in the country; 80,250 of them have got both COVID-19 vaccine shots.  Three coronavirus vaccines are used in Tajikistan: Moderna; AstraZeneca; and CoronaVac.