Colombia received 2.3 million Pfizer vaccines donated by the German government

They will be aimed at strengthening vaccination schemes in the country's municipalities

A batch of immunizers aimed at combating covid-19 received Colombia, headed by the vice-president and chancellor, Marta Lucía Ramírez, from the government of Germany.

Accompanied by the Minister of Health, Fernando Ruiz, and the German Ambassador to Colombia, bPeter Ptassek, the Vice President led a formal event at the Air Military Transport Command, CATAM, in which she highlighted the German government's collaboration with the Colombian government in the field of health.

According to the official report provided by the Foreign Ministry, this donation is the result of international visits by the official in November last year, where she had the opportunity to meet with the Federal President, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and the German Foreign Minister, Heiko Maas.

The vice-president highlighted the strength of bilateral relations with the European country: “Germany's cooperation with Colombia is a state policy between two countries that have been united for many years,” added Marta Lucia Ramirez. For his part, the German ambassador to Colombia, Peter Ptassek, declared that there is a long way to go before the end of the coronavirus pandemic in the world, so “among friends, we have to help when it's time”.

Immunizers, destined for the National Vaccination Plan, will strengthen schemes in municipalities of the country.

MinSalud published recommendations for coexistence in open spaces without masks

A nurse puts a vaccine from the manufacturer Pfizer-BioNTech against Covid-19 during a vaccination day for medical personnel, in the Plaza de los Artesanos, in Bogotá (Colombia). EFE/ Carlos Ortega/Archive

After the Ministry of Health established that municipalities with more than 70% of their population vaccinated against covid-19 could lift the measure of wearing masks in open spaces, the portfolio issued three recommendations when implementing that guideline.

As a first recommendation, the Deputy Minister of Public Health and Service Delivery, Germán Escobar, reminded all Colombians that “with the flexibility in the use of masks in open spaces, we must remember that the SARS-CoV-2 virus has not gone away yet.”

Taking this into account, Escobar stressed that, first of all, citizens should be aware of self-care, so if they do not have the full vaccination schedule, he recommended continuing to use tapobacas in open spaces.

In this regard, and as a second step, the official asked Colombians to complete their immunization schedules against the disease, going to all available vaccination points in the country to receive their booster doses.

“Vaccines are the most effective measure to prevent death and serious illness from covid-19,” stressed the deputy minister of health.

Finally, Escobar pointed out that anyone who has any comorbidities or is in the elderly population, may wear the mask in public spaces if they prefer. “If vaccination is reinforced, this risk decreases substantially.”

This is how the covid-19 pandemic progresses in Colombia

Archive photograph in which a woman was registered when vaccinated against Covid-19, in Bogotá (Colombia). EF/Mauricio Duenas

As of March 7, 29 deaths were reported in Colombia due to covid-19, thus the country accumulated 139,120 deaths due to the disease during the pandemic.

Regarding the number of cases, the report indicated that, on the same date, 952 new infections were registered in the country, thus adding a total of 6,072,656 cases, of which 9,725 were active.

The report also revealed that, as of March 7, the regions of the country with the highest number of cases were Bogotá, with 1,760,776; Antioquia, with 916,922 and Valle del Cauca, with 539,451. With regard to the number of people recovered, the Ministry of Health indicated that, to date, there were a total of 5,901,731 people who had overcome the disease.

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