Ukraine International Airlines (UIA, Kyiv) is ready to transport vaccines.
“Since the beginning of 2021, the active stage of vaccination has begun all over the world, which will tend to increase throughout the current year. In order to ensure safe delivery of vaccines, UIA has prepared Boeing 737 and Boeing 767 aircraft to transport the vaccines as cargo,” the press service of UIA said on Monday.
The airline also expressed its readiness to transport the vaccine not only to Ukraine, but all over the world. At the same time, it is noted that given the peculiarities of compliance with the required temperature regimes, transportation of the vaccine by air is the fastest and most reliable method of delivery.
According to the company, since the implementation of quarantine measures, UIA has transported 870 tonnes of medical cargo.
Ukraine is exploring the possibility of using financial instruments of the UK Export Finance (UKEF) to purchase British tests and vaccines to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.
“We are currently discussing the implementation of a joint project for the development of the Ukrainian fleet and related infrastructure. We are also exploring the possibility of using UKEF financial instruments to purchase British tests and vaccines in the fight against coronavirus infection. Another area is the possibility of using these resources for the construction of Europe’s largest onshore wind farm in Zaporizhia region (Zofia project),” the minister told Interfax-Ukraine, answering a question about the interest of Ukrainian-British projects in cooperation with UKEF.
Kuleba said that within the framework of the memorandum of cooperation between UK Export Finance and the Cabinet of Ministers signed on October 8, 2020, five priority areas have been identified: security and defense, infrastructure, agriculture, energy and healthcare. However, he said, collaboration is not limited to these industries.
“On December 10, representatives of the agency will hold a presentation of the available financing instruments and opportunities for cooperation with Ukrainian partners in the framework of the Ukrainian Investment Roadshow,” Kuleba said.
As Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the United Kingdom of Great Britain Vadym Prystaiko said during an online briefing for Ukrainian exporters “Bilateral Trade between Ukraine and Great Britain after Brexit”, the mechanism of the UK Export will allow access to concessional lending at 2.5-4%.
“This is a GBP 2.5 billion loan agreement that allows access to concessional lending at 2.5-4% depending on the terms of the contract,” Prystaiko said at an online briefing organized by the Ukrainian Embassy in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Council of Exporters and Investors under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. At the same time, the share of the British partner in such projects should be 20%, Prystaiko said.
He also said that although we are talking about imports, Ukrainian exporters will thus be able to obtain certain services, technologies or raw materials.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine exempted imported vaccines from coronavirus disease from VAT.
The corresponding government decree, adopted at a meeting on Wednesday, includes a number of antibiotics and vaccines for the prevention of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the lists of drugs that are exempt from VAT, approved by Resolutions No. 224 and No. 225.
As Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said at a government meeting, this decision will reduce the cost of imported vaccines for the prevention of COVID-19.
Ukraine expects to receive the first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines under the COVAX initiative in the first half of 2021, Ukrainian Health Minister Maxym Stepanov has said.
“The first tranche will include 1.2 million doses and is expected to reach Ukraine in the first half of 2021,” Stepanov said during an online briefing on Friday.
The necessary technical documents are to be signed before December 7, he said.
“We plan primarily to vaccinate people from risk groups, such as medical workers, people aged 65 and older, and people having chronic diseases,” he said.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), ten pharmaceutical companies are currently completing Phase 3 of the clinical trials of COVID-19 vaccines and are planning to have their vaccines certified soon, Stepanov said.
The Ministry of Health of Ukraine has asked the World Bank to increase the amount of funds previously considered for Ukraine in order to purchase vaccines, according to the agency’s website.
“Now the Ministry of Health has two priority areas in the fight against COVID-19 from the point of view of the healthcare system. The first one is to ensure maximum testing with PCR tests. Therefore, in addition to our large laboratories, it is important to consider the possibility of equipping laboratories for 200-250 PCR tests directly in hospitals. The second priority is the vaccine. We turned to the World Bank with a request to increase the amount of funds that were previously considered for allocating to Ukraine for the purchase of vaccines,” Minister of Health Maksym Stepanov said.
He expressed hope that these two areas will become the basis for new strategic projects between the Ministry of Health and the bank.
Arup Banerji, the World Bank Regional Country Director for Eastern Europe (Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine), in turn, promised “to cooperate with the ministry’s team to provide all the resources necessary to implement these directions.”
The Ministry of Health, with the involvement of the British procurement agency Crown Agents, will purchase 1.41 million doses of influenza vaccines to vaccinate medical workers, educators, police and border guards, the press service of Chief Sanitary Doctor of Ukraine Viktor Liashko has reported.
The changes to government resolutions No. 255 dated March 13, 2019 and No. 129 dated February 19, 2020 were approved by the government at a meeting on Monday.
The agency will procure vaccines at the expense of the remaining balance of funds for 2019, provided for the procurement of drugs to accompany patients with cancer.
“All available vaccines have passed WHO prequalification and confirmed their safety. The countries of origin are the leaders in the production of vaccines in the world – France, the Netherlands and South Korea,” the press service said.
