ISLAMABAD: Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal has said that the Pakistani government is providing 13 types of vaccines free of cost to its citizens, but none of them are manufactured in the country. If a local vaccine is not developed, the annual cost will reach $1.2 billion by 2031, which will be a huge burden on the national economy.

Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal, while holding a press conference, said that Pakistan has a population of about 240 million and is the fifth largest country in the world in terms of population. About 6.2 million children are born here every year. The government in Pakistan is providing 13 types of vaccines free of cost to its citizens, but none of these vaccines are manufactured in the country.

He said that the government of Pakistan imports these vaccines with the support of international organizations, which cost about $400 million annually. 49 percent of the cost of the vaccine is paid by international partners, while 51 percent is borne by the government itself, due to which the financial burden on the government remains relatively low.

Mustafa Kamal warned that after 2031, the assistance of international partners will end, if a local vaccine is not developed, the annual cost will reach $1.2 billion by 2031, which will be a huge burden on the national economy. We have started work without waiting for 2031.

He said that during the war, the vaccine had stopped coming to Pakistan, we order the vaccine through Gavi, which came from India. In the near future, Pakistan will be able to produce the vaccine itself. Saudi Arabia has been working on the vaccine for 10 years and Indonesia is producing two million doses annually.

Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal said that we are a nuclear power, if we made the JF-17, we can also make the vaccine.