MANILA, U.S. Embassy in the Philippines -- The United States, in partnership with the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) facility, donated an additional 3,400,020 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to the Philippines as part of its continuing worldwide effort to help end COVID-19.

The vaccines, delivered in two separate shipments to Manila on December 20 and 21, were part of the 500 million Pfizer doses the United States is making available for distribution through COVAX, a global initiative to support equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines.

U.S. Embassy in the Philippines Chargé d’Affaires ad interim (CDA) Heather Variava joined National Task Force Against COVID-19 Chief Implementer Secretary Carlito Galvez, Jr. and other representatives at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport to welcome the December 20 arrival of the shipment of 1,776,060 doses. Another 1,623,960 doses were delivered on December 21. These 3,400,020 doses are the largest single donation of the Pfizer vaccine to the Philippines from the 500 million made available by the United States.

“The United States extends our heartfelt sympathies to those affected by Typhoon Odette. We are supporting ongoing Philippine response efforts and exploring ways to further assist communities in need. We also remain committed to partnering with the Philippines to protect Filipinos from COVID-19,” CDA Variava said.

“Today, I’m pleased to welcome more than 3.4 million U.S.-donated Pfizer vaccines as part of this effort. As the year draws to a close, we hope these vaccines will help protect our Filipino friends, partners, and allies and usher in a new year of health and prosperity,” she added.

As the largest donor to the COVAX facility, the United States has facilitated the delivery of more than 53 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to the Philippines, including more than 22 million doses donated by the American people.

The vaccines donated by the United States are enough to fully vaccinate one-in-ten Filipinos.

The United States is working closely with Philippine partners to protect public health and support the local response to COVID-19. In addition to vaccine donations, the U.S. government has provided more than Php1.9 billion ($39 million) in COVID-19 assistance to the Philippines to support testing, crucial care, communication campaigns, protection and training of health workers, vaccine deployment, and essential equipment and supplies.