A batch of 407,000 doses of the AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccines has arrived in the country from the United Kingdom.

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The batch was received at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on Tuesday evening by Ministry of Health Acting Director Dr Patrick Amoth, British Deputy High Commissioner Julius Court, UNICEF Chief of Health Yaron Wolman and WHO Specialist Sergon Kibet.

The UK government donated the vaccines to boost Kenya’s national COVID-19 program.

“We are now receiving the second batch of vaccines that have been donated by the United Kingdom Government to boost our national COVID-19 vaccination program,” said Amoth.

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PHOTO/MoH

The vaccines come when the government is geared towards achieving its plans to vaccinate 10 million adults by December this year target of 26 million adults by mid-2022.

“In addition to supporting the ongoing roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccines to our health workers, teachers, other essential workers and Kenyans older than 58 years, the vaccines we have received today, will greatly support our target to vaccinate 10 million adults by the end of December 2021,” he added.

The Deputy British High Commissioner Julius Court said the vaccines were part of the 100 million doses agreed upon during President Uhuru Kenyatta’s visit to London in July.

PHOTO/MoH

“The donation was agreed in President Kenyatta’s visit to London last month, and just last week the High Commissioner saw some of those vaccines in arms in Nairobi at the Lions SightFirst clinic, serving vulnerable communities nearby in Kangemi,” Court said.

Court also said his country and Kenya have an extremely strong partnership in tackling the COVID-19 vaccine.