Venezuela cannot purchase vaccines through the APHO due to debts with the organization

For a debt of 11 million dollars, corresponding to the years 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.

Venezuela cannot purchase vaccines through the Pan American Health Organization’s (OPS) revolving fund, because it owes about $ 11 million, that organization’s director of health emergencies, Ciro Ugarte, said Wednesday.

“Due to the current situation in Venezuela, the country has not been able to make the payment for the purchase of vaccines and at the moment the accumulated debt is about 11 million dollars”, said the expert, consulted during the session. weekly report organized by that body.

“Therefore,” the official added, “it is not possible to purchase vaccines through the revolving fund for Venezuela at this time, despite the fact that the credit for the country has been increased.”

Ugarte added that that country has participated in that fund “for many years” and stressed that APHO and Unicef ​​are supporting Venezuela to purchase vaccines, from which they have also received donations.

“The technical and logistical support that is being implemented in Venezuela aims to increase vaccination coverage in the country, immunization, through the strengthening of routine vaccination and also of vaccination campaigns,” said Ugarte, who stressed the efforts to strengthen vaccine coverage programs against preventable diseases in the coming months.

On September 29, OPHO suspended Venezuela’s voting rights, due to debts accumulated since 2017.

The decision was made during the APHO’s 58th Board of Directors after a report presented by the working group made up of Aruba, El Salvador and Trinidad and Tobago, according to which the country owes $ 7,854,219 to the organization.

According to the presentation made by the Salvadoran representative, Carlos Gabriel Alvarenga, deputy minister of health management and development of his country, Venezuela had “pending payment” at the time of the opening of the APHO Governing Council, the corresponding taxes to 11 million euros. dollars.

In addition to pending fees, Venezuela owes amounts to the revolving vaccine fund and the organization’s strategic fund.