Tanzania's Zanzibar receives China-donated COVID-19 vaccines

Zanzibar's Minister of Trade and Industrial Development Omar Said Shaaban (L) and Chinese Consul General in Zanzibar Zhang Zhisheng attend the handover ceremony of the COVID-19 vaccines at the Abeid Amani Karume International Airport in Zanzibar, Tanzania, on July 31, 2021. Tanzania's Zanzibar on Saturday received a batch of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines and syringes donated by China. (Photo by Herman Emmanuel/Xinhua)

ZANZIBAR, July 31 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania's Zanzibar on Saturday received a batch of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines and syringes donated by China.

Zanzibar's Minister of Trade and Industrial Development Omar Said Shaaban, Chinese Consul General in Zanzibar Zhang Zhisheng and other officials from the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar attended the handover ceremony of the vaccines at the Abeid Amani Karume International Airport.

This is the second batch of vaccines donated by China to Zanzibar after it made the first donation for frontline health workers about a month ago.

Speaking after the handover ceremony, Shaaban, who represented the government of Zanzibar, said the vaccines will play a major role in helping Zanzibar fight the pandemic.

"Donation of the vaccines will continue to cement the friendly relations forged many years ago between China and Tanzania's Zanzibar, " said Shaaban.

Arrangements will be made for the distribution of the vaccines, said Shaaban, adding that priority for vaccination will be given to frontline workers and those with underlying health issues.

For his part, the Chinese envoy said China will always stand with the Zanzibar people in their fight against the pandemic.

Apart from the vaccines, the Chinese government has donated various medical equipment and supplies to Zanzibar for fighting COVID-19 since the beginning of this year, according to Zhang.

"We will keep sharing experience and providing assistance according to our capacity," said Zhang, adding that politicization and disinformation regarding COVID-19 and vaccines is another virus that must be avoided.

Noting that China has provided over 700 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to countries across the world, especially the developing nations, Zhang said the fight against COVID-19 needs solidarity and cooperation all over the world.