Cyprus on Saturday took delivery of its first batch of 10,000 coronavirus vaccines purchased from Pfizer-BioNTech enabling the country to begin vaccinations, officials said. [ Ссылка ] EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides and Cyprus Health Minister Constantinou Ioannou welcomed the shipment before the vaccines were transported under police escort to a location where special storage freezers are kept.

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“Today is a milestone in the efforts of Europe and the rest of the world to tackle this huge health crisis,” said Ioannou.

“Receiving the vaccines today fills us with optimism and revives our morale as we are heading towards the end of this long road we are experiencing,” he added.

Cypriot EU Commissioner Kyriakides tweeted: “This is an emotional moment. After months of hard work, the day of the first dispatches of COVID-19 vaccines is here.

“Thousands of doses are being delivered today to all Member States at the same time. This is solidarity and unity in action.”

Cyprus’ vaccination programme will begin on Sunday as part of the EU-wide effort, with the first recipients being senior citizens over 80, people over 75 considered to be vulnerable to the deadly disease, and front-line health workers.

The first to be vaccinated will be an elderly resident at a care home in Nicosia, as well as a doctor and a nurse at the dedicated Covid-clinic at Famagusta General hospital.

President Nicos Anastasiades will be vaccinated on Monday during a live broadcast as part of a campaign to encourage the public to get vaccinated.

“In the next 24 hours, hope becomes tangible. We are ready to welcome the vaccine, the gift of the scientific community to humanity, we are ready to begin to slowly build the wall against the spread of the pandemic,” Anastasiades said in a message.

By the end of January, 50,000 vaccines are scheduled to arrive for 25,000 people.

Cyprus intends to inoculate the entire population of around a million, although getting the vaccine is not compulsory.

Vaccine industry response to COVID-19

Overview
Vaccination is the main tool for primary prevention of disease and one of the most cost-effective public health measures available. Immunisation through vaccination is the best defence we have against serious, preventable, and sometimes deadly, contagious diseases. Thanks to widespread vaccination, smallpox has been eradicated, Europe made polio-free, and many other diseases almost eliminated.

European strategy against COVID-19
On 17 June 2020, the European Commission presented a European strategy to accelerate the development, manufacturing and deployment of vaccines against COVID-19. An effective and safe vaccine against the virus is our best bet to achieve a permanent solution to the pandemic.

On 15 October, the Commission adopted its Vaccination StrategySearch for available translations of the preceding link••• presenting the key elements Member States should take into consideration for their COVID-19 vaccination plans, as well as priority groups to consider for vaccination first.

Current challenges
Today, more than 100 million children worldwide are vaccinated annually against diseases such as diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, tuberculosis, polio, measles, and hepatitis B. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), vaccination prevents an estimated 2-3 million deaths worldwide each year and reduces disease-specific treatment costs, including antimicrobial treatments (prescribed for viral infections).

Despite its brilliant track record, several EU and neighbouring countries are currently facing unprecedented outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases due to insufficient vaccination coverage rates. The waning of public confidence in vaccination, geographical differences in accessibility, and rise of disinformation on vaccination are a cause of concern and a major challenge for public health experts. Ensuring equitable access to vaccines for all EU citizens, fighting disinformation, and improving vaccine confidence are objectives shared by the European Commission and EU Member States.

There are very strict rules within the European Union for the approval of any vaccines put on the market. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) carries out the evaluation and supervision of vaccines, once these have been designed. Following very comprehensive testing, the European Commission can then issue a marketing authorisation. Once on the market, EMA continues to evaluate the safety of the vaccines and performs post-authorisation surveillance. All these steps are devised to ensure maximum safety, with the ultimate concern being the health and wellbeing of the population.

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