Sílvia Lutucuta, who was presenting the National Vaccination Plan of Angola, said that the country is resorting, in demand, to all safe and certified vaccines.
According to the minister, in addition to the possibilities of the African Union, with Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and some initiatives from China, Angola is also looking at the Sputnik V vaccine.
"We are working between governments and when working between governments the price is lower, but for each dose it is 9.9 dollars, this is the price of governments, because in other markets they are double, but we are going directly to source, saving resources, quality assurance, because we have to be very careful at this point, because there is already a lot of counterfeit vaccines and we have to make sure that we are going to get vaccines from manufacturers ", said Lutucuta.
The first batch of vaccines arrived in Angola this week, a total of 624,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, manufactured in India, under the Covax Initiative, with 12.8 million doses expected to be delivered by the end of July.
"Despite a small number, we have already vaccinated 92 people, of various ages, people at the front line, high risk, our doctors and the very young techniques, but they are at the front line and have had no adverse effects," she stressed.
The official said that the National Vaccination Plan is ambitious and provides for vaccinating the entire population over 16 years, which represents 52 percent, with a total of 16.8 million people expected to vaccinate.
"People are not obliged, but it should be made clear that no one wants to die and that the vaccine protects, we do not want people here tomorrow who are sorry for not going to get the vaccine and then after 15 days he is in a critical condition, he dies, just because he doesn't I wanted to get the vaccine, "said Sílvia Lutucuta, stressing that the vaccine" is free, protects, saves lives ".
The holder of the Health portfolio, in addition to the Vaccination Plan with all the components that led to its approval, also highlights the creation of its new cold chain, prepared to receive any type of vaccine, with various temperatures, refrigeration from two to eight degrees, freezing (-20 degrees) and also ultra-cold (-86 degrees).
"In the case of this particular vaccine, from AstraZeneca its temperature is between two and eight degrees and we have this type of conditions nationwide, under the Extended Vaccination Program (PAV)," she said.
The minister announced on Saturday the start of vaccination in Luanda in a high-performance center, in the pavilion attached to Cidadela Desportiva, where health professionals from the province of Luanda will be served.
For this purpose, a pre-registration in the health units must be done, and health professionals, accompanied by this form, an identity card or a work identification document, must find the necessary information on the spot to have a smooth vaccination, advised the minister.
