Sri Lanka seeks World Bank loan to purchase COVID-19 vaccines

COLOMBO (News1st): The government has begun talks with the World Bank to obtain a soft loan worth Rs 10 billion to purchase vaccines against COVID-19, the Sunday Times newspaper has reported. It is also looking at the possibility of obtaining funding from the Asian Development Bank and the European Union for this purpose, the report citing a government official read. Sri Lanka has submitted a preliminary application to COVAX, a global initiative aimed at providing equitable access to the vaccines, additional secretary of public health services Dr Lakshmi Somatunga said. Three technical sub-committees are looking into various aspects of the COVID-19 vaccine including its storage and the prioritization of target groups to receive the jab.