The 200,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines, announced as a gift by India, will be sent to the UN peacekeepers on March 27 and then will be distributed to the peacekeeping missions.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had announced in February that India will gift 200,000 COVID-19 doses for UN peacekeepers.
“Keeping in mind the UN Peacekeepers” who operate in such difficult circumstances, we would like to announce today a gift of 200,000 doses for them,” Jaishankar has said while addressing the UN Security Council open debate on the implementation of resolution 2532 (2020) on the cessation of hostilities in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 200,000 doses essentially mean that it will be possible to administer the required double doses of COVID-19 vaccine to all UN peacekeepers across missions. According to UN Peacekeeping, as of January 31, 2021 a total of 85,782 personnel are serving in 12 peacekeeping operations across the world led by the Department of Peace Operations.
The Oxford-AstraZeneca’s Covishield is being manufactured by Pune-based Serum Institute. The SII has collaborated with Oxford University and pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca for making the vaccine.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres had said that he is “extremely grateful” for the gift of 200,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses for UN peacekeepers announced by India.
