The first shipment of 500,000 Sinopharm vaccines arrived on Monday in the Maiquetía International Airport from China on a Conviasa aircraft.
This is the second COVID-19 vaccine Venezuela receives and it will be incorporated into the vaccination campaign that started with Russia’s Sputnik-V vaccine.
President Maduro made the announcement on Monday night on his Twitter account.
“With great joy, I inform that 500,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines are arriving right now from the People’s Republic of China. This is a wonderful news that fills us with hope. Soon, we will start a massive vaccination campaign.”
Later, the Venezuelan president expressed: “On behalf of the Venezuelan people, I thank our brother, President Xi Jinping, and the noble Chinese people for their unbreakable cooperation spirit and solidarity with our beloved homeland. The Chinese vaccine will strengthen the immunization process we launched in the country.”
Also, Executive Vice-president Delcy Rodríguez, in the company of the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China, Li Baorong, explained this is the eleventh shipment with supplies Venezuela has received from China since the two countries established an airlift on March 19, 2020.
Rodríguez said the shipment also includes PCR test kits, masks, biosecurity suits, rapid tests, and medical supplies and equipment for hospitals.
Venezuela launched a massive vaccination campaign prioritizing health workers and law enforcement personnel.