Reportedly, the total cost of the delivery is $1.98 million. UNICEF is transporting Covishield to Uzbekistan under the COVAX program. Uzbekistan receives vaccines free of charge.

Covishield is an Indian version of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute.

It should be noted that many European countries – Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Slovenia, Portugal, Cyprus, the Netherlands, Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway and Iceland – have announced the complete or partial cessation of the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine after reports of side effects, including deaths.

Outside Europe, the drug has been suspended by Indonesia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Thailand and South Africa.

The WHO Vaccine Safety Advisory Committee will review the safety issues of AstraZeneca’s product.