Deyalsingh: Spain donates 40,000 covid19 vaccines for children to Trinidad and Tobago

HEALTH Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said the Government of Spain has offered Trinidad and Tobago some 40,000 vaccines, for children five to 11, although to fully vaccinated the cohort of that age range will require 240,000 vaccines. He was replying to a listed question from Tabaquite MP Anita Haynes in the House of Representatives on Friday.

Deyalsingh said in January the WHO's Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on Immunisation had approved covid19 vaccinations for children aged five to 11.

"In light of the above the Ministry of Health is currently in discussions with Pfizer Inc concerning the terms of a suitable agreement for the provision of these vaccines.

"In the interim, the Government of Spain has offered TT a gift of 40,000 Pfizer paediatric vaccines and a vaccination programme for children between the ages of five and 11 years will commence on the receipt of these vaccines."

Caroni Est MP Dr Rishad Seecheran asked why the ministry had not procured paediatric vaccines pending WHO approval, as one for Sinopharm vaccines.

Deyalsingh replied, "We started negotiations with Pfizer prior to the approval, my friend, and that has been made public. So I don't know what fishing expedition you are on.

"We started this process with Pfizer in 2021 before the vaccines were approved in January 2022."

Fyzabad MP Dr Lackram Bodoe asked when the vaccines from Spain would arrive.

Deyalsingh said the paediatric vaccination would start when the vaccines arrived but he did not have an arrival date.

"We currently have no firm date but as with all the vaccines coming in, we are working assiduously behind the scenes to acquire these vaccines in the shortest possible space of time. Let's hope you would encourage people to take the vaccine."

Asked how many vaccines were needed to vaccinate all children in the five-to-11 age group, he said that cohort had 120,000 children, who would require 240,000 doses of Pfizer vaccine (which is a two-dose regime), if all children took it.

"But that is not what we are aiming at. These vaccines have a very short expiry date in June 2022, so we are being realistic in what we can administer in that short time frame."

Seecheran tried to ask Deyalsingh his message for parents of as yet unvaccinated pupils heading out to school in April, given the need for 240,000 vaccines.

Speaker Bridgid Anisette-George did not allow the question.