Iran Receives First Delivery of COVID-19 Vaccines through COVAX Facility

Tehran, 05 April 2021 – The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, as one of the self-financing participant countries of the COVAX Facility, has received the first batch of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine with 700,800 doses.

The COVAX Facility, is a partnership co-led by Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), Gavi-The Vaccine Alliance and the World Health Organization (WHO), alongside key delivery partner United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).

The consignment is the first COVAX shipment to the country, with future consignments of the approved allocation of COVID vaccines to be delivered in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Medical Education of the Islamic Republic of Iran through UNICEF procurement channel.

The AstraZeneca vaccines for the I.R. of Iran, manufactured by SK-Bio Institute of South Korea, landed at Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport on Monday, 5 April 2021, and were received by the representatives of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education of the Islamic Republic of Iran in presence of the WHO and UNICEF technical teams.

Achieving this important milestone aimed at ensuring the global goal of equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines across the world through COVAX facility is the key priority for WHO and partners.