Screengrab from PTV
MANILA - The Philippines on Thursday night welcomed nearly 1.2 million government-bought COVID-19 vaccine shots from Pfizer, as the country races against time to inoculate the majority of the population this year.
The 1,187,550 Pfizer doses, procured through the Asian Development Bank, arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) via Air Hong Kong flight LD456 before 9 p.m., the National Task Force Against COVID-19 said.
The shipment completes the 2,730,780 Pfizer vaccines that the government bought through the ADB.
Earlier in the day, the Philippines received 1,543,230 jabs from the manufacturer. The country also received 1,531,000 donated Moderna shots from the German government.
These raise the country's total vaccine deliveries to nearly 200 million, where over half or some 104 million have already been administered.
Philippine authorities earlier in the day approved the use of Pfizer's vaccine for the inoculation of children as young as 5 years old, just as the country further expands its inoculation coverage.
The FDA last week advised the DOH and vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. that government would have to procure separate vaccines for children, according to its chief Eric Domingo.
The dosage that will be given for children is 10 micrograms, lower than those for adults, he said.
Philippines has so far fully vaccinated 46.4 million people while at least 56.7 million are partially inoculated from COVID-19, government data showed.
Over 1.2 million individuals, meanwhile, have received their booster shots.
The government aims to fully vaccinate some 54 million individuals by the end of the year. This is their low-end target.
WATCH