SEPANG – Malaysia today took delivery of the Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine, almost a week after it received the first batch of the Pfizer-BioNTech jab.
An “envirotainer” – a temperature-controlled container – with 200l of the vaccine arrived shortly before 9am at Kuala Lumpur International Airport from Beijing, China, on flight MH319, a Malaysia Airlines Airbus 330-300.
The passenger-to-cargo flight left Kuala Lumpur for Beijing at 7.05pm yesterday to pick up the vaccine.
The amount of the Sinovac jab procured by Malaysia is enough for 300,000 doses.
Several ministers were at KLIA during the vaccine’s arrival.
They were Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob; Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein; Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, who is also coordinating minister of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme; and, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong.
Also present was Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia Ouyang Yujing.
After the envirotainer, which is able to maintain its internal temperature at between 2°C and 8°C, was unloaded from the aircraft, Yujing handed a white box to Ismail Sabri, symbolising the handover of the vaccine.
The envirotainer was brought to the i-Secure area for checks by the MASkargo vaccine handling team, after which it was transferred onto a Pharmaniaga truck that left for the designated storage location under police escort.
The delivery of the vaccine from the Sinovac plant in Beijing was handled by the manufacturer and Pharmaniaga Logistics Sdn Bhd.
Pharmaniaga on January 13 announced that it has signed an agreement with Sinovac to bottle and distribute 14 million doses of the latter’s Covid-19 vaccine.
Last Sunday, Malaysia received its first batch of 312,390 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech jab.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin became the first person in the country to receive the coronavirus vaccine, during the launch of the national inoculation campaign.
The programme will be carried out in three phases, with Phase 1, from February to April, for frontliners.
Phase 2, scheduled from April to August, is for people aged 60 and above, high-risk groups with morbidity issues, and persons with disabilities, while Phase 3, from May to next February, is for individuals aged 18 and above. – Bernama, February 27, 2021
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