Bangladesh approves direct procurement for COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use

The government has greenlighted the direct procurement method to buy coronavirus vaccines for emergency use.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 2 Dec 2020, 01:34 PM
Updated : 2 Dec 2020, 01:34 PM

The approval came at a virtual meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Law Minister Anisul Huq in the absence of the finance minister on Wednesday.

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal is currently outside the country.

“Vaccines have to be or can be bought through direct procurement method, this proposal was approved today,” Additional Cabinet Secretary Abu Saleh Mostafa Kamal said at a virtual press briefing following the meeting.

“The issue of expenditure will be discussed in the proposal for purchase,” Abu Saleh said on the cost of the vaccines.

Responding to why the vaccines were being purchased without tender, he said, “The vaccines have to be taken at a time. According to the PPR [Public Procurement Rules], a matter is brought before the committee when a one-time purchase in one year costs more than Tk 50 million.”

“The valuation is higher because the supply has to be taken at a time. The proposal required the committee’s consideration following section 76(2) of PPR, 2008.”

Bangladesh has inked a contract to receive 30 million doses of the vaccine, developed by the Oxford University in collaboration with AstraZeneca, from the Serum Institute of India.

The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization or GAVI also assured Bangladesh of giving 680,000 doses for 20 percent of the population. The government is hoping to get its hand on these vaccines by January-February 2021.

The World Health Organization and GAVI are preparing for several months to distribute the vaccines to people in all corners of the world once the candidates are proved effective and safe.

After the novel coronavirus emerged in China’s Wuhan in December last year, the global tally of infection has risen to 60.45 million people while 1.42 million have died, according to a tally by the Johns Hopkins University.

Bangladesh has recorded 2,198 new cases of the coronavirus in a daily count, taking the tally of infections so far to 469,423.

The death toll surged to 6,713 after 38 fatalities were registered in the 24 hours to 8 am Wednesday, the government said in a statement.

With no effective medicine to treat the disease yet, the whole world is in keenly waiting for the vaccines.