A healthcare employee preparing to administer a vaccine to a affected person. — AFPISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination Dr Faisal Sultan on Tuesday mentioned Pakistan is hopeful it’s going to obtain the primary batch of the COVID-19 vaccine from China’s Sinopharm in “early February”.Pakistan said last month it would purchase 1.2 million COVID-19 vaccine doses from Sinopharm in the first official confirmation of a vaccine purchase as the country battles a second wave of infections.“We hope to be able to get vaccine doses from Sinopharm in the first quarter of this year, hopefully starting in early February,” Dr Sultan mentioned in an interview with Arab News, including that the federal government goals to start the method of vaccination throughout the first quarter of this yr.“We are hoping to deploy the vaccine within the first quarter. The 1.1 million doses are just the first phase,” he mentioned.Here’s all it’s essential find out about China’s Sinopharm vaccineSultan mentioned the federal government was taking a look at “multiple options” and was in contact with all firms whose vaccines had been permitted internationally.The National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) on Sunday began registering frontline well being care employees who can be vaccinated within the first part.“This is the first batch of 1.2 million doses for health workers; there will be more orders which will be used for the public in phases,” mentioned Dr Atta-ur-Rahman, chairman of the COVID-19 process pressure.Vaccination for basic publicBoth the federal government and personal sector firms would deliver vaccines into Pakistan however the personal sector need to get their vaccines registered with the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), mentioned Dr Rahman.“DRAP will check and have control on both the quality and price of the vaccine from the private companies,” he added.Pakistan establishes first coronavirus vaccine centre in IslamabadDr Rahman mentioned that most of the people could be vaccinated between June and September this yr.“Pakistan is considering getting the vaccines from all the companies whose vaccines have been approved internationally,” he mentioned.