Bangladesh hopes to get vaccine in time despite India’s ban

Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen has said that Indian Foreign Ministry does not know anything regarding Delhi's decision not to export the Oxford University-AstraZeneca vaccine for the next several months.

The minister confirmed this to The Business Standard on Monday morning.

Dr Abdul Momen said "Dhaka contacted the Indian Ministry in the morning after getting information from the media about the ban on vaccine export. Delhi informed that they were not aware of the matter."

"They will update Dhaka after communicating with the authorities concerned," Momen said.

Expressing hope, the minister said Bangladesh would get the vaccine in time.

"Government is trying to solve all issues regarding this," he added. 

India on Sunday decided not to allow Serum Institute to export the vaccine for several months.

The ban on exports means that poorer nations will probably have to wait a few months before receiving their first shots.

In an interview with AP, India's Serum Institute's CEO Adar Poonawalla said, "The vaccine has been granted emergency authorisation by the Indian regulator on Sunday, but on the condition that Serum Institute doesn't export the shots to ensure that vulnerable populations in India are protected."