ReliefWeb

As we continue to face the pandemic together, Australia is committed to supporting health security and economic recovery in Papua New Guinea.

In October 2020, Australia announced a $500 million (PGK 1.3 billion), three-year Regional COVID-19 Vaccine Access and Health Security Initiative to support governments in the Pacific and Southeast Asia to plan for, access and roll out safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines.

Through this initiative, Australia will provide $144 million (PGK 374 million) for COVID-19 vaccination in PNG over three years. This is in addition to Australia’s ongoing development assistance to PNG.

Australian High Commissioner to PNG Jon Philp said Australia is proud to be supporting PNG with its vaccine rollout to give all Papua New Guineans the opportunity to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

“Vaccination promises to be a gamechanger and help all of us in the region move on from the COVID-19 disruption safely. Achieving high levels of immunisation is essential for recovering from the health and economic impacts of this devastating global pandemic,” he said.

A timely, safe and effective vaccine rollout will pave the way for re-establishing travel, tourism and trade. It will allow more families and friends to reunite and help bring back international training, employment, sporting and cultural exchange opportunities.

Under this initiative, Australia will help PNG procure vaccines that have met internationally accepted standards of safety and efficacy. The initiative will provide technical assistance to support PNG’s decisions on vaccination rollout and assessments of vaccine safety and quality and help build capacity for the health workforce.

The initiative complements Australia’s support for global efforts to help our region to access vaccines, including through the COVAX Facility Advance Market Commitment (AMC) for developing countries.

For further information, including access to related materials, please contact the Australian High Commission media team on +675 7090 0100.