21 April 2021
Beirut, Lebanon
UN Deputy Special Coordinator, Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon, Ms. Najat Rochdi, announced today the arrival from the UN headquarters of the first batch of 15,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine that will be used in the soon-to-be launched vaccination programme intended for its UN Personnel and recognized dependents in Lebanon.
The UN System-wide COVID-19 Vaccination Programme is fully supported by the UN Country Team and is aligned with the national vaccination plan and the roll-out of vaccines that are closely coordinated with UNICEF, WHO and the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH).
Through this UN-administered vaccine, the UN system in Lebanon hopes to lessen the burden on the Government by providing additional Covid-19 vaccines in close coordination with MoPH, while committing to ensuring the protection, safety and well-being of its own international and national personnel.
Ms. Rochdi clarified that the UN vaccination will follow the standards of prioritization set by the UN, which are in line with MoPH guidance. She also mentioned that the vaccines will be provided to UNIFIL troops as well as to the UN personnel and their dependents, noting that the vaccination sites are selected in agreement with the MoPH standards and requirements. The UN also emphasizes its commitment to upload all relevant information about the vaccinated UN staff to the National IMPACT platform.
The Resident and Humanitarian coordinator finally reiterated the need to protect the UN personnel so they can in turn protect and serve others.