Saudi Arabia has ordered 1 million doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine, to be supplied by the end of February 2021. This will increase to 3 million vaccine doses by the end of May.

The Kingdom has had comparatively low cases of Covid-19 and is now taking the steps towards vaccination. Al Arabiya has reported this Tuesday, that 700,000 people have registered to take the vaccine so far.

The UK’s Covid-19 vaccine rollout

The UK was the first country in the world to roll out the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, from 8^th December 2020, starting with its first recipient, Maggie Keenan.

The UK’s rollout differs to that of Saudi Arabia as there is no registration system, people will be told by the NHS when it is their turn to receive the vaccine.

 

A word from Shaykh Sudais

Haramain Sharifain tweeted this week, that Shaykh Dr Abdur Rahman As Sudais, the Imam of the Grand Mosque in Makkah has said,

“Islam came to urge treatment and the Kingdom’s efforts to secure a Corona vaccine are great, and I call on everyone to receive the vaccine according to the legal, health and regulatory requirements.”

Saudi Arabia currently has a population of about 35 million, with 2.8% of people being aged 65 or over. This programme will be a step closer to ensuring the safety of worshippers in the Haramain.

By Nasria Begum

Reference links

• Al Arabiya article on vaccine dose numbers
• Wall Street Journal article on the first UK vaccine dose
• Haramain Sharifain twitter account
• Population statistics, Word Population Review