Apia, Samoa, 9 April 2021 – Today, Samoa joins Fiji, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Nauru
and Tuvalu, in the Pacific islands, to receive COVID-19 vaccine doses shipped via the
COVAX Facility, a partnership between CEPI, Gavi, UNICEF and WHO. This is a
historic step towards achieving the goal to ensure equitable distribution of COVID-19
vaccines globally, in what will be part of the largest vaccine procurement and supply
operation in history.
The 9 April 2021 arrival in Apia of 24,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19
vaccine marks the sixth batch of vaccines to arrive in the Pacific region through the
COVAX Facility in the global partnership’s effort to deliver at least two billion doses of
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“ Samoa has long awaited the arrival of the first doses of the Astra Zeneca vaccine as
we continue to adhere to stringent prevention measures. We are most appreciative of
the support through the COVAX facility ensuring early and equitable access to vaccines
and are deeply grateful in particular to our partners who have made the journey with us
to support vaccination efforts and other crucial public health measures, in the past, now
and into the future,” said the caretaker Prime Minister Honourable Tuilaepa Sailele
Malielegaoi, on receiving the news of the arrival of the vaccines.
Dr. Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccination Alliance, emphasized that “COVAX's
mission is to help end the acute phase of the pandemic as soon as possible, allowing
global equitable access to vaccines against COVID-19.”
“We acknowledge the Samoan Government’s efforts to ensure robust preparedness
and response plans to address the threat of COVID-19,” said UNICEF Pacific
Representative, Sheldon Yett. “We will continue to work with the government and
partners, through the COVAX facility, to support vaccination efforts and other essential
public health measures to keep communities protected.”
“Samoa is one of the few countries in the world currently without active cases of
COVID-19, and no deaths as a result of COVID-19,” said Dr. Akeem Ali, the Acting
Director of WHO’s Division of Pacific Technical Support. “A lot of hard work has gone
into this. Now we have another important tool: vaccines. WHO has been carefully
monitoring the rollout of all COVID-19 vaccines and will continue to work closely with
countries to manage potential risks, and make timely recommendations based on
science and data. We encourage Samoans to work with the Ministry of Health to get
vaccinated; and to maintain the protective measures that have kept the country safe to
date.”
The Ministry of Health in Samoa is targeting frontline staff in line with global
recommendations. This will include frontline healthcare workers, border control staff as
well as government and private sector staff who are responding to COVID-19
quarantine and management of operations.
For several months, COVAX partners have been supporting governments and partners
in readiness efforts, in preparation for this moment. They have been especially active in
working with countries benefitting from the Advance Market Commitment (AMC), an
innovative financial mechanism to help secure global and equitable access for COVID-
19 vaccines. This includes assisting with the development of national vaccination plans,
support for cold chain infrastructure, as well as stockpiling of half a billion syringes and
safety boxes for their disposal, masks, gloves and other equipment to ensure that there
is enough equipment for health workers to start vaccinating priority groups as soon as
possible.
Vaccines are now arriving in batches to supported countries following necessary
preparatory work being completed to ensure immediate administration of vaccines to
priority groups identified by national governments in their vaccine deployment plans.
Samoa has completed preparatory work in good time and therefore able to receive
allotted vaccines from COVAX today.
As vaccines start to roll out around the world, they should complement, and not replace,
proven public health measures. It is also important to expand access to rapid
diagnostics and treatments, such as oxygen and dexamethasone, as advocated for by
the ACT Accelerator. Samoa, like other countries, will continue to apply tried-and-tested
measures to successfully prevent and control transmission, such as physical distancing,
masks, ventilation and hand hygiene, alongside robust programmes to test, trace,
isolate and treat.
The COVAX mechanism is offering a portfolio of vaccines suitable for a range of
settings and populations, and is on track to meet its goal of delivering at least two billion
doses of vaccine to participating countries around the globe in 2021, including at least
1.3 billion donor-funded doses to the 92 lower-income COVAX Facility participants
supported by the Gavi COVAX AMC. Samoa welcomes the arrival of this batch of
vaccines and look forward to receiving additional batches needed to complete the
vaccination of all eligible people living in Samoa.
In ensuring the safety and efficacy of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, the
vaccine has undergone rigorous clinical trials and safety assessments in order to
ensure it meets the highest level of safety standards.
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Notes to Editors:
To download photos: https://bit.ly/3wFOgXU
COVAX, the vaccines pillar of the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, is co-
led by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), Gavi, the Vaccine
Alliance Gavi) and the World Health Organization (WHO) – working in partnership with
UNICEF as key implementing partner, as well as civil society organisations, vaccine
manufacturers, the World Bank, and others.
Full COVAX News Note to Editors: https://www.who.int/initiatives/act-
accelerator/covax/covax-news-note-to-editors
List of donor pledges to the Gavi COVAX AMC:
https://www.gavi.org/sites/default/files/covid/covax/COVAX-AMC-Donors-Table.pdf
UNICEF COVAX page: https://www.unicef.org/supply/covax-ensuring-global-equitable-
access-covid-19-vaccines
Media Contacts:
CEPI Press office
Telephone: +44 7387 055214
Email: press@cepi.net
GAVI
Meghana Sharafudeen: +41 79 711 55 54 msharafudeen@gavi.org
Evan O'Connell +33 6 17 57 21 26 econnell@gavi.org
National Vaccines Coordination Committee in Samoa
Peseta Noumea Simi: + 685 24346, mailto:noumea@mfat.gov.ws
UNICEF Pacific
Zubnah Khan: +679 9988137, zukhan@unicef.org
WHO Division of Pacific Technical Support
JIN Ni: +679 7779722, jinn@who.int