Australia will donate 8,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccine to Papua New Guinea (PNG) and seek approval for another million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine to help the Pacific island its recent outbreak, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Announced Wednesday.
The country will also send one million surgical masks and 100,000 gowns, gloves and disinfectant along with 200 non-invasive fans and 20,000 face shields to PNG.
It is in Australia’s interest, and is in our region’s interest, “Morrison said.
Australia suspends all outbound travel, including charter flights, to PNG for two weeks from midnight Wednesday, Morrison said. Only cargo and some humanitarian workers will be released.
He also said that workers flying in and out between the two countries should stay where they are. “The increase in virus problems in Papua New Guinea also poses many risks to Australia,” he said.
Morrison said he was in touch with his counterpart, PNG Prime Minister James Marape, because the growing number of cases in the country was ‘very worrying’.
“We have helped with some (Covid-19) tests in Papua New Guinea and out of the 500 tests our health authorities have done for Papua New Guinea, 250 have returned positive,” Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said in a press said. conference Monday.
PNG reported 97 new cases of coronavirus on Sunday, bringing the total confirmed infections to 2,269, according to the country’s health ministry.
Five new virus-related deaths were also reported on Sunday, bringing the country’s total death toll to 26, the ministry added.