This archive report was first published on 3 May 2021.
On May 3, 2021, Angola's President João Lourenço announced that the country would receive $50 million from the European Investment Bank to purchase Covid-19 vaccines.
President Lourenço made the announcement after meeting with European Council head Charles Michel and his delegation in Luanda, Angola's capital.
The country has invested heavily in infrastructure to combat the Covid-19 pandemic, including efforts to acquire vaccines, President Lourenço said.
"We also hope to benefit $50m from the European Investment Bank to purchase vaccines," President Lourenço said, adding that the country had acquired 6,000,000 Sputnik V vaccines from Russia, with the first batch expected to arrive in the country this month.
Charles Michel expressed the European Council's desire to continue working with Angola on several issues, stating, "We discussed matters of common interest with the Angolan President," after the meeting.
As of April 30, Angola had recorded 26,652 coronavirus cases, with 2,180 cases still active, 596 deaths, and 23,876 recoveries.
Meanwhile, the Japanese government provided $450,000 in emergency aid to support Angolan authorities in fighting Covid-19, strengthening vaccines management, storage, and distribution.
"We reinforce our commitment and join efforts to support the fight against the pandemic in Angola," said Japanese Ambassador Jiro Maruhashi.
Angola aims to vaccinate 22 million people by the end of 2021, with the country having received 624,000 doses of Covid-19 jabs from the Covax initiative on March 2 and starting vaccinations three days later.
