Covax Facility reduces number of vaccines allocated for North Korea

The Covax Facility, a global vaccine distribution platform, has reduced the amount of Covid-19 vaccines allocated for North Korea, a United Nations website showed Tuesday, apparently canceling a batch of jabs developed by a U.S. company, in a move seen attributable to the lack of a response from Pyongyang.

A total of 1.29 million vaccines have been allocated to the North, according to the UN Children's Fund's Covid-19 Vaccine Market Dashboard, down 252,000 from the previous 1.54 million doses as of earlier this month.

In its vaccine allocation decision proposal last month, Covax set aside 252,000 Covovax vaccines developed by Novavax for North Korea.

Covax previously set aside 1.29 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccines for the North this year.

North Korea, which has claimed to be coronavirus-free, has yet to receive coronavirus vaccines amid its prolonged border controls against the pandemic.

An official at South Korea's Ministry of Unification, which handles inter-Korean affairs, told reporters on background that the government is aware that "various working-level" consultations between North Korea and Covax are underway.

"As these consultations are going on, the government will continue to keep an eye on related issues," the official added without elaborating.

Yonhap