World Bank has approved USD 153 million to support the ongoing national vaccine drive in Pakistan

The third wave of COVID-19 emerged in Pakistan in March 2021 and is threatening the lives and livelihoods of millions of people

The World Bank has approved the provision of USD 153 million to support the ongoing national vaccine drive in Pakistan to help the country fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

This comes under World Bank’s effort to help poor countries purchase and distribute vaccines, tests, and treatments. As of May 13, the World Bank has approved vaccine projects in 21 countries amounting to more than USD 2 billion.

According to the press statement released on Thursday, these funds will help strengthen the health system’s capacity to implement the vaccination campaign for its prioritized and eligible populations.

“The third wave of COVID-19 emerged in Pakistan in March 2021 and is threatening the lives and livelihoods of millions of people,” said Najy Benhassine, World Bank Country Director for Pakistan.

“The World Bank remains a committed partner to support Pakistan in addressing this public health crisis, including through vaccination, and providing support to tackle the social and economic impacts of the pandemic.”

In addition to this financing for vaccines in Pakistan, the World Bank has provided a total of USD 768.5 million to support the vaccination purchase and rollout efforts in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.

In addition to financing, the Bank is providing technical assistance and knowledge-sharing workshops for countries in South Asia on different aspects of designing and deploying fair and equitable vaccine strategies.

Till May 13, a total of 3,997,186 people in Pakistan had received the COVID-19 jab, Geo News reported.