Foxconn founder assured 8 to 9 million doses will arrive in Taiwan this year

The founder of Foxconn, Terry Gou has requested 30 million doses of BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine for Taiwan. The country's search for access to the vaccine, developed in collaboration with Pfizer Inc has gone on for months, impeded by claims from Taipei of political intervention from Beijing. According to a news agency, Taiwan's government permitted Gou and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd to negotiate for the shot on its behalf. Last month, a $350 million contract was struck for 10 million shots, which will be donated to the government for distribution.

8 to 9 million doses will arrive this year

Gou said that he had been assured that 8 million to 9 million doses would arrive this year, with the first shots arriving in September, in a lengthy post on his Facebook page late Sunday. He went on to say that he'd asked BioNTech whether they could reserve 30 million dosages for Taiwan for next year. According to a news agency, BioNTech did not respond to a request for comment.

Premier Su Tseng-chang praised Gou for his kind reminder about vaccine purchases, stating the government has already placed an order with Moderna Inc. for second-generation vaccines. Taiwan has been gripped by the BioNTech vaccine saga, which has dominated headlines. While the coronavirus outbreak is under control, just about 5% of the country's 23.5 million residents are fully vaccinated. Taiwan's government has ordered millions of vaccines from Moderna, AstraZeneca PLC, and Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp., among others. 

Taiwan will receive 2 million doses between the end of August and the start of September

According to Taiwan News, Taiwan's Health Minister and Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) head Chen Shih-chung stated the BioNTech vaccine will arrive ahead of schedule after Taiwan was able to pry a shipment away from a third country on Wednesday. Chen did not say when or how many dosages would be included in the initial batch. However, officials told Taiwanese media on the same day that the country will receive around 2 million doses between the end of August and the beginning of September. Chen revealed during a press conference on August 27 that starting at 2 pm on Saturday, Taiwan's vaccine registration website will offer the BioNTech vaccine as an option. Students will be given priority, followed by other approved age groups, according to Chen.

Image - Unsplash