President: COVID-19 vaccine will be provided to everyone for free

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih stated on Thursday that COVID-19 vaccine will be made available to everyone in Maldives for free.

He made the statement during a ceremony in L. Gan to inaugurate the Gan Central Power Plant, Gan Zone Stadium, and CT scan services at the Gan Regional Hospital on Thursday evening.

In his address during the inauguration, President Solih noted that those who contracted COVID-19 in Maldives include a large number of foreign workers.

He provided assurance that no one will be sidelined once the vaccine becomes available for mass administration.

“The government’s policy is to provide the vaccine for free to all Maldivian citizens without distinction, and everyone who lives in Maldives,” he said.

Health Emergency Operations Center (HEOC) has previously stated that a national steering committee has been formed to undertake necessary preparations ahead of vaccination.

The national steering committee is engaged in efforts to establish vaccine storage facilities, procure necessary equipment, prepare proposals to secure vaccines under the COVAX facility, and prioritize groups that will receive the vaccine first.

HEOC expects to initially receive enough vaccine to administer to 20 percent of the Maldivian population under the COVAX facility.

The first to get administered the vaccine will be high-risk groups among frontline workers, including doctors, nurses and others, who are at risk of direct exposure.

Out of the major COVID-19 vaccines shown to be effective in trials, Maldives is working on securing the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine and the Moderna vaccine, given that they don’t have to be stored at freezer temperatures, making it potentially easier to store and distribute.