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Ethiopia has received COVID-19 vaccine support from European Union.
Six EU countries have contributed for this support: France (6746,400), Finland (1699200), Denmark (1560000), Greece (1346400), Italy (1264110), Sweden (480690), and a total of 13,096,800 doses of COVID-19 vaccine.
The handover ceremony was attended by the ambassadors of the countries, embassy representatives and UNICEF officials where they discussed with the Minister of Health, Dr Lia Tadesse.
During the forum, Dr. Lia said that the support will increase the availability of vaccines, which will be of great benefit to the prevention and control of the disease.
She said the global endeavor to increase the availability of the vaccine is an indication of the ongoing efforts to control the spread of the disease.
According to the Minister, the vaccine is being made available to the public through health extension workers at primary health facilities in the country.
In this process, there are misconceptions in the community and fears that the vaccine will cause side effects, she said, adding that efforts are being made to create awareness through the use of media. Finally, the Minister expressed her gratitude and appreciation for the support.
In total, Ethiopia has received 24,000,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine from the European Union, including the previous donations of German and Portuguese governments.