There is an acute shortage of COVID-19 vaccines in large parts of the region. Thanks to the close cooperation between Austria and the European Commission, 651,000 vaccine doses from the EU’s collective purchase have been secured for the Western Balkan states of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, Northern Macedonia and Serbia. The doses from the manufacturer BioNTech/Pfizer will be delivered between the beginning of May and August and are to be used primarily to vaccinate health care workers as well as vulnerable population groups.
In the fight against the pandemic, we cannot afford any blank spots on the vaccination map. No one is safe until everyone is safe. It is therefore all the more important that with the countries of the Western Balkans we can now support a region in our immediate neighbourhood to which we particularly strong bonds,
said Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg.
At the request of the European Commission, Austria’s task as coordinator was to set the legal framework and prepare purchase and supply contracts between BioNTech/Pfizer and the individual Western Balkan states. In addition, Austria provides interim financing through the Foreign Disaster Fund. The funds provided to the Western Balkan states will be refunded to Austria and then paid back into the Foreign Disaster Fund after the delivery of the vaccines. The costs for the vaccines of the six states are borne by EU IPA funds – the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance.
One thing is clear: this solidarity campaign does not jeopardise the supply of vaccine in Austria in any way.
No one in Austria will be vaccinated later as a result of the campaign,
Foreign Minister Schallenberg stated.
The doses were explicitly designated by the EU for the purpose of passing them on to partner countries.
I would like to thank the European Commission, especially Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi for the excellent cooperation. This is an impressive demonstration that we as the EU do not abandon our friends in the Western Balkans even in times of crisis,
said Alexander Schallenberg.
The exact distribution is based on the epidemiological needs of the individual countries. Bosnia and Herzegovina receives 214,000 doses, Albania 145,000 doses, Northern Macedonia 119,000 doses, Kosovo 95,000 doses, Montenegro 42,000 doses and Serbia 36,000 doses.
