Nicaragua has already received a first disbursement of 23,826,673 dollars, from a 100 million dollar loan, granted by the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), for the purchase of vaccines against covid-19 and medical supplies.
After the delivery of these funds, the Government of Daniel Ortega managed to make the first purchase of vaccines certified by the World Health Organization (WHO), through the Revolving Fund of this organization. The contract with CABEI establishes that only vaccines approved by that body and that have completed the phase III study can be purchased.
In this first purchase, 15.8 million dollars were invested, as explained by the vice president and state spokesperson, Rosario Murillo, and consisted of the acquisition of 2.5 million doses from AstraZeneca, of which 1.2 million arrived in the country on December 17, 2021.
The disbursement occurred on November 4, 2021, a few weeks after the CABEI will authorize a series of modifications to the original contract, how to eliminate the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) from supervising the execution of the project.
In addition, the deputy general minister of the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (MHCP), José Adrián Chavarría, was given authority to sign on behalf of Nicaragua in any process related to the project. This decision occurred after the United States sanctioned to the head of the MHCP, Iván Acosta.
They will buy 6.8 million vaccines
Some 77.7 million dollars —78% of the loan— will be used exclusively for the purchase of vaccines, and some 557,000 will be used to purchase supplies for their application such as syringes, safety boxes and cotton, according to the contract. With this purchase they hope to vaccinate some 3.2 million Nicaraguans.
According to the document, some 4.8 million dollars will also be used to buy refrigerators and freezers for storage temperatures of +2°C to +8°C, refrigerated vehicles, freezers for storage at -20°C, thermal boxes, among others. teams improve the country’s cold chain.
2.1 million dollars will be invested to improve the design, equipment and implementation of an information and technology system for registration, distribution and monitoring of vaccination. Meanwhile, $889,000 will be used to buy protective equipment for health personnel who will work on vaccination days.
The Global Investment Plan details that some 7.8 million dollars will be for “support to the vaccination process”; four million for “diagnostic support”; 3.4 million in “supervision and audit”; 6.2 million in “contingencies and escalation”; and plus $250,000 for the “CABEI Monitoring Commission”.
The contract also provides that the bank can make a refund for the purchase of vaccines. For which the Minsa, the executing agency, must present the documentary evidence on the payments made to suppliers.
On behalf of CABEI, the Government also accessed a fund of 11.7 million dollars, which is part of a road construction project and in 2020 was redirected to the attention of covid-19. Purchases of medical supplies have been made with this fund. In November 2021, 2.7 million were used to purchase medicines, as reflected in the ‘covid contracts’ published by the MHCP.
Nicaragua has 15 million vaccines
As of January 24, Nicaragua had received some 15.4 million vaccines against covid-19, of eight types: Covishield/Astrazeneca, Sputnik V and Light, Soberana 02, Abadala, Pfizer, Janssen and Sinopharm. 42.9% of these were donated through the Covax Mechanism and the rest are purchases made from Russia and Cuba, which offer vaccines not yet authorized by the WHO.
With these vaccines, it has been possible to inoculate 80% of the population with one dose and 58% with two, according to official data shared with PAHO. This places the country as the fourth nation in Central America with more people fully vaccinated. Although the Government affirms that Nicaragua is already second in terms of progress, when comparing the number of doses applied and not the coverage by population, as established internationally.
Despite advances in vaccination, true immunization in the territories is still unknown; There is also no data on the number of citizens who have already received the third or reinforcement dose, or the number of doses applied by type; and there is no evidence of who is receiving the Sinopharm and Janseen vaccines.
