Armenia to benefit from WHO, EU vaccine rollout program

PanARMENIAN.Net - The World Health Organization and the European Union are launching a 40-million euro ($48.5 million) program to help deploy Covid-19 vaccines in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova , WHO's regional director for Europe said Thursday, February 11, while highlighting a 4-week decline in confirmed coronavirus cases, The Associated Press reports.

The program will involve the six former Soviet republics, and complements the work of an existing EU program and the WHO-backed COVAX Facility that aims to deploy vaccines for people in all countries in need whether rich or poor, Dr. Hans Kluge said.

“Vaccines offer a way to emerge faster from this pandemic. But only if we ensure that all countries, irrespective of income level, have access to them,” Kluge told reporters from WHO Europe headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark.

“Unfair access to vaccines can backfire. The longer the virus lingers, the greater the risk of dangerous mutations,” he added.

Kluge also relayed the “good news” that the number of new confirmed infections in the 53-country WHO Europe region has declined for four straight weeks and virus-related deaths have fallen in each of the last two weeks. He also pointed to falling hospitalization rates.

The number of confirmed coronavirus infections in Armenia grew by 180 to reach 168,676 on Thursday, February 11 morning. So far, 160,670 people have recovered, 3130 have died from the coronavirus in the country, while 786 others carrying the virus have died from other causes.