JAAF, CCC jointly propose vaccines for employees
The Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF) together with the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC) will be jointly proposing to the health authorities to purchase COVID-19 vaccines to inoculate around 500,000 of their employees and a section of the community on a priority basis.
During meetings held with the Health Department officials, JAAF and CCC had indicated that they were willing to purchase vaccines for approximately 500,000 employees and a further section of the population, JAAF General Secretary Tuli Cooray told the Business Times.
He noted that they have committed to bring down one million doses of vaccine, through the government, for use on their employees and those of the CCC.
Mr. Cooray pointed out that they held meetings on Wednesday as well with the Health Ministry Secretary and had informed the authorities of their commitment to finance the purchase of the one million vaccines on a priority basis for their employees.
The industry is working on the database of their employees that was required by the health officials in a bid to carry out the inoculation once the vaccines are purchased.
He noted that they were in the process of establishing where the employees are located and provide the necessary information to the health authorities in a bid to ensure they could purchase and distribute the vaccines when they arrive.
CCC Secretary General Manjula de Silva told the Business Times that they are in discussion with JAAF to work jointly and have carried out a survey of their membership and a number of their companies are interested in it.
Both doses of the vaccine will be administered as per the requirement in this respect by the authorities who will order the vaccines on their behalf, Mr. De Silva explained.
He noted that they will be financing both doses of the vaccine and are also looking at meeting the expenses of the needs of a section of the people in the country, as well.
This proposal is being finalised and both organisations are to write to the health authorities on Monday of their intentions to provide financial support in purchasing the vaccines, it was pointed out.
Sri Lanka had already commenced vaccination of its priority sectors upon receiving the first batch of its vaccines from India as part of a donation to the country amounting to 500,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVISHELD.
Meanwhile, until January 26 there have been 87,556 PCR tests carried out on employees of all 13 BOI zones with companies spending around Rs.562 million with the largest amount of testing carried out in Katunayake, Biyagama and Seethawaka, Free Trade Zone Manufacturers Association Secretary Dhammika Fernando said.
Since October 8, with the second outbreak of the COVID – 19 in Sri Lanka there had been about 2800 detections made of COVID-19 positive cases.
Further, he noted that 57,401 tests have been carried out on factories outside the zones incurring a cost of Rs.373 million that have reported 1, 800 positive cases.