News Desk
Saudi Arabia’s first batch of coronavirus vaccine will arrive today and will be distributed within the next three days, Al-Arabiya TV reported, citing health minister Tawfiq Al-Rabiah.
Speaking at the Saudi Budget Forum 2021, Al-Rabiah said that Saudi Arabia has successfully dealt with the pandemic from its inception when it spread outside China.
“We witnessed an international race on medical equipment at the beginning stages of the pandemic, but Saudi Arabia placed human health above all and raised the number of intensive care beds by 60 percent within 3 months,” he added.
About 150,000 people have registered to take the coronavirus vaccine through “Sehaty” App since its launch yesterday, state news agency SPA reported, quoting the health ministry.
The ministry has previously announced that the vaccine would be free, and assured the public of its safety as the jab passed all testing stages.
For his part, Finance Minister Mohamed Al-Jadaan said that the Kingdom supported all private sector initiatives to preserve Saudi jobs, “as we witnessed a strong return to economic activity in Saudi Arabia during the third and fourth quarters,” he added.
He added that Vision 2030 has prepared the country to confront the COVID-19 crisis.
He further said that the government was able to convert to virtual work, thanks to the investment in technology.
Announcing a 2021 budget with spending of SR990 billion ($264 billion), King Salman said: “We have directed that the budget give priority to protecting the health and safety of citizens and residents, and to continue efforts to limit the effects of the pandemic on our economy.”
