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On Saturday, August 28, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) delivered 188,370 doses of the Comirnaty COVID-19 vaccine produced by Pfizer-BioNTech to Ukraine.

These doses, together with the vaccine dilution solvent, are provided to Ukraine by the United States government through the COVAX initiative as part of global measures to ensure fair and equal access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines for all countries of the world.

“I want to sincerely thank the US government and our partners who, within the framework of the COVAX initiative and outside it, help protect as many Ukrainians as possible, primarily from priority groups, from the severe consequences of the coronavirus disease. I would like to remind that the COVID-19 vaccine is available for all adult citizens. All you need to do is register in a convenient way and come and get vaccinated”, said the minister of health of Ukraine Viktor Liashko.

The new batch of vaccines is intended for use in mass vaccination centers and for organized groups.

“The United States is committed to the global fight against COVID-19, and we are proud to work with Ukraine to expand access to quality and approved COVID-19 vaccines across the country. Vaccines are one of the best tools we have to fight this pandemic”, said Christina Queen, charge d'affaires a.i. of the United States in Ukraine.

Storage and logistics of mRNA vaccines for this delivery within COVAX, in compliance with the appropriate cold chain in Ukraine, is provided by the US Agency for International Development USAID through the SAFEMed project.

“UNICEF is grateful to the US government for its continued support for the response to the pandemic and the life-saving vaccination against COVID-19 in Ukraine. Today it is extremely important and timely. Given the prospect of a new wave of COVID, we need as many parents and as many teachers as possible to get vaccinated against COVID-19. We know that vaccines work. Now that vaccines are available, it is important that teachers and parents receive their protection and can fully support 4.2 million schoolchildren in Ukraine”, said Murat Shahin, head of the UNICEF representative office in Ukraine.

“WHO welcomes the receipt of additional vaccines to protect the population of Ukraine from severe cases of COVID-19. In recent months, we have regularly supplied the vaccine, and now Ukraine makes more than 1 million vaccinations a week, which is very promising. Vaccination, together with public health measures, helps us overcome the pandemic. And I urge people at risk, the elderly and health workers who have not yet received the COVID-19 vaccine to contact their family doctor or the vaccination centers currently open across the country to get vaccinated before the next wave of the pandemic begins, to be safe and maintain their health”, said Dr. Jarno Habicht, head of the WHO office in Ukraine.

Earlier in July, UNICEF delivered 2,000,040 doses of the COVID-19 Moderna vaccine provided by the U.S. government through COVAX. In total, 4,325,910 doses of vaccines from various manufacturers (Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca) have been delivered to Ukraine as part of the COVAX initiative.

In early August, UNICEF also supported the delivery of 509,400 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine provided by the Danish government.

Deliveries within COVAX will continue. By the end of 2021, Ukraine is expected to receive enough vaccines from various manufacturers to protect up to 20% of the population from COVID as part of the initiative.

The COVAX initiative aims to ensure fair and equal access to COVID-19 vaccines for every country in the world. COVAX's work is coordinated by the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI), WHO, and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), while UNICEF works with manufacturers and partners to purchase and logistics COVID-19 vaccines. COVAX works with civil society organizations, vaccine manufacturers, the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, the World Bank, and others.