Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — Dr. Abdullah Al-Asiri, the assistant undersecretary at the Ministry of Health for preventive health, said that more COVID-19 vaccines are expected to be registered in the coming months.

In an interview with the Al-Ekhbariya channel, he said that the ultimate goal of the ministry is to cover the largest possible number of vaccine recipients so as to realize sufficient immunity against the virus by the end of 2021 and thus enable the Kingdom to contain the pandemic. The ministry official said that the vaccine would be given according to the schedule of supplies as there is a very big global competition to grab the vaccines.

Distribution of vaccine in main regions in first phase

Dr. Asiri said that the distribution of the coronavirus vaccine will be restricted to the main regions in the Kingdom during the first phase. He cited the main reason for this as the availability of more specific centers to keep this type of vaccine. “When the rest of the vaccines that do not require such conditions begin to arrive in the Kingdom, they will be distributed more widely to all health centers, whether they are under the Ministry of Health or outside it,” he said.

According to Dr. Asiri, Saudi Arabia is one of the first three countries in the world to start the actual vaccination and thus achieving a major headway in fighting the pandemic. “The ministry’s goal is to cover the largest possible number of citizens and expatriates with a focus on groups vulnerable to severe diseases and some critical professions,” he added.