Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Indonesia on Saturday welcomed a fresh shipment of around 1.3 million doses of Astrazeneca's Covid-19 vaccine, acquired via the global procurement scheme Covax Facility.
The archipelagic country also showed support for the Covid-19 vaccine waiver – initially proposed by India and South Africa at the World Trade Organization (WTO) – in a bid to push for vaccine equity.
According to Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi, in addition to the new shipment, Indonesia had already received 55,300 Astrazeneca doses under the multilateral scheme on Thursday.
"This brings the amount of the third batch of vaccines received this week from Covax to 1.4 million doses of finished Astrazeneca vaccines," Retno told a conference broadcasted from the Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Tangerang on Saturday.
In total, 6.4 million doses of Covax-procured vaccines have arrived in Indonesia.
Retno said Indonesia so far has secured 75.9 million doses, out of which 68.5 million were Sinovac's Covid-19 vaccine. As well as the aforementioned 6.4 million of Astrazeneca doses via Covax, and one million doses of Sinopharm vaccine.
At the conference, the diplomat also voiced Indonesia's support for the patent waiver.
"Since the pandemic began, Indonesia has consistently called for vaccine equity," Retno said.
"Indonesia supports the vaccine patent waiver to boost global vaccine production capacity. This is part of the global effort to pave the way for equitable vaccine access for all," she added.
Last October, India and South Africa proposed a waiver of certain provisions of WTO's Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (Trips) agreement on Covid-related medicines and vaccines.