The United States Government announced today the donation of approximately 2 million doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to the people and government of Uzbekistan. The donation brings the total number of COVID-19 vaccines that the United States has donated to Uzbekistan to 7.6 million.
Diseases know no borders. The vaccines are part of the 1.2 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses that the U.S. is making available for distribution through COVAX, a global initiative to support equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines. The United States is committed to partnering with Uzbekistan to end the COVID-19 pandemic, mitigate its devastating social and economic impacts, and build back a world that is even better prepared for future outbreaks.
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission Director Mikaela Meredith joined Government of Uzbekistan officials and other stakeholders at the Islam Karimov International Airport to welcome this latest vaccine shipment. Director Meredith stated: “The United States continues to donate these free COVID-19 vaccines to the people of Uzbekistan, and I am pleased to see over 70 percent of the eligible population is now fully vaccinated. It is a significant milestone. I urge everyone to get vaccinated to help end this pandemic.”
The United States is working closely with the Government of Uzbekistan to protect public health and support the local response to COVID-19. In addition to vaccine donations, USAID recently allocated $2.5 million in urgent COVID-19 assistance for Uzbekistan. With this assistance, the United States Government, through USAID and the U.S. Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC), has provided more than $17.5 million to address COVID-19 in Uzbekistan.
USAID has also worked closely with Uzbekistan since the pandemic began to strengthen the national laboratory systems for large-scale testing; prevent and control infections in labs and healthcare facilities; improve diagnostic capacity, COVID-19 surveillance and rapid response; enhance the treatment of infected people; and improve public awareness of COVID-19, community engagement, and volunteer mobilization.
