June 10, 2021 _–Grenada and other Caribbean countries, along with their Latin American counterparts will benefit from a donation of six million COVID-19 vaccines, being made available by the United States.

Following the May announcement to make vaccines available to countries in need, the Joe Biden administration last week unveiled its strategy for sharing the vaccines globally.

In the case of the Caribbean and Latin America, the vaccines will be shared through the COVAX Facility, which helps to ensure global equitable access to the vaccines.

Although the actual breakdown of the vaccine distribution remains unknown,Prime Minister, Dr. the Right Honourable Keith Mitchell, said the donation will take the country closer to the total number of vaccines needed.

To date, 18,400 Grenadians have received their first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, with 9,500 people receiving both doses. 

At his latest media engagement on Wednesday, the Prime Minister said while the numbers continue to increase daily, the country is a long way from achieving herd immunity.

He said, “We commend the persons who have been vaccinated thus far, but it is certainly not meeting our expectations and we are therefore trying to do everything possible to increase the level of vaccination by several initiatives.” 

The Prime Minister spoke of a recent meeting that discussed various initiatives that can be undertaken at the community and national level to encourage persons to vaccinate.

Dr. Mitchell indicated that further details on any agreed upon initiatives, will be provided by the Ministry of Health and the COVID-19 Committee.

On the issue of vaccine hesitancy among Grenadians, the Prime Minister said while persons may exercise their right not to vaccinate, employers have an equal right to protect their businesses. He urged persons to realise that vaccination is the responsible thing to do as we seek to get back to normal.