Source: Roosevelt Skerrit
Following the availability of 70,000 doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in Dominica, top government executives have been the first to be inoculated with the vaccines. President Charles Savarin was the first individual in the country to be vaccinated against the pandemic, and his wife Clara also received the shot of the vaccine.
Others that also received the vaccine are Health Minister Dr. Irving McIntyre, Ministry of Health parliamentary secretary, Kent Edwards, and Government Information Service head, Daryl Titre. They all got vaccinated with the vaccines at the Dominica China Friendship Hospital on Friday, February 12. Acting Chief Medical Officer, Laura Esprit, had earlier announced that the vaccination will roll out on February 22, but this was fast-tracked for top government functionaries.
After getting the shot, President Savarin encouraged all Dominicans to receive the vaccination, saying it will help to safeguard the country against the coronavirus pandemic. The president admitted that many people nurse misgivings about the safety and effectiveness of the vaccines, but noted that it is not different from polio and smallpox vaccines which people had received in the past.
Savarin appreciated the Indian government for the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines, and he also thanked PM Roosevelt Skerrit for donating 5,000 doses to Antigua and Barbuda. He said the government will consider making further vaccine donations to Grenada, St. Lucia, and other OECS countries. He said Dominica can only be truly rid of the pandemic when it has been effectively eliminated in neighbouring countries, hence the need to assist other countries to combat the scourge.
“We are an island, but we are not isolated nor are we immune from what is happening in the rest of the region; and while we would like to see herd immunity here in Dominica, our safety will depend on herd immunity in the region, Barbados and the OECS,” Savarin stated. “I believe that the efforts being made here in Dominica for the sharing of resources with the rest of the OECS will help us in managing more effectively and efficiently this pandemic, and hopefully in the short run create herd immunity in the OECS.”
Top priority groups such as frontline healthcare workers, law enforcement officers, and aged people are next in line to receive the COVID-19 vaccination starting from February 22.
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