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KUALA LUMPUR: The RM3bil allocation for a Covid-19 vaccine will come from special expenses from the Covid-19 Fund, says Khairy Jamaluddin.
“I have requested the Minister of Finance to prepare the allocation of RM3bil, and he will answer the need for it to be consolidated in the Covid-19 Fund as a special expense,” said the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation when answering a question posed by Chan Foong Hin (PH-Kota Kinabalu) at Dewan Rakyat on Monday (Nov 16).
He said the amount was an estimated cost for the vaccine under the global coronavirus vaccine access plan (Covax).
“The RM3bil is an estimate based on the price spectrum offered to nations and we cannot provide an exact cost at this time,” he said, adding that the finance minister would explain in more detail when responding on the 2021 budget.
Last week, opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim asked the government where the RM3bil would come from, as he could not find records of the source of the money in the budget.
Earlier, Khairy informed lawmakers that, as of November 13, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that there were 11 companies in the third stage of vaccine trials.
“To date, the government is in direct contact with eight vaccine producers and two through Covax,” he said.
He said the government is in the final stages of negotiations regarding obtaining the vaccine for the country and will make an official announcement once the agreements are finalized.
He noted that he was unable to provide further details on the matter, as the government is bound by a nondisclosure agreement with vaccine manufacturers.
Under the Covax deal, he said Malaysia will have access to the vaccine to cover 10% of the population, and the vaccine for another 60% will come from other sources.
“70% of the total vaccine is in line with the National Vaccine Policy of developing herd immunity for the nation,” he added.
Once obtained, he said priority for vaccination will be given to those battling Covid-19, followed by those in the high-risk categories and the adult population.
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