A disclosure from Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong shows the government has spent $2.5 million at hotels with ties to the Myanmar military regime, despite Australia's repeated condemnation of the junta's violence and political executions.
Donations Pour in as People of Myanmar Dig Deep to Help Cover Cost of Vaccine
Donations Pour in as People of Myanmar Dig Deep to Help Cover Cost of Vaccine
Myanmar medical staff in Yangon take nasal swab samples from truck drivers who need to travel for work reasons, at the Zero Mile point of the Yangon-Mandalay Expressway. / Htet Wai / The Irrawaddy
4.0k
By Zaw Zaw Htwe 12 January 2021
Yangon Contributions continue to pour in to help Myanmar’s government cover the cost of a COVID-19 vaccine. Individuals, tycoons, businesses and religious organizations responded immediately to a government request for help on Jan. 5.
Myanmar Orders 30 Million COVID-19 Vaccine Doses From India
A nasal swab sample is taken from a truck driver in Yangon. / Htet Wai / The Irrawaddy
4.4k
By Zaw Zaw Htwe 8 January 2021
Yangon – Myanmar has ordered 30 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine from India that are due to arrive by February, according to the President’s Office on Friday.
The Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, is producing the COVID-19 vaccine, called Covishield, that was developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca.
U Zaw Htay, the President’s Office director-general, told the media that the government is planning to initially pay US$75 million (100 billion kyats), half the amount for the vaccine order.
Send Story
As of 8 PM, 6 Jan, a total of 17,279 samples were tested and found 596 new cases and 19 deaths. MoHS has reported 128,178 confirmed cases including 111,401 discharged, and 2,785 deaths.
Some Myanmar business tycoons including U Zaw Zaw, Chairman of Ayeyarwady Foundation, and U Chit Khine, Chairman of Eden Group have donated 2 billion kyats and $ 1.5 million respectively to the government for the purchase of Covid-19 vaccine after inviting donations. The fund management sub-committee on the purchase of Covid-19 vaccines has opened a foreign currency account and a Myanmar currency account for those who want to donate in purchasing Covid-19 vaccines at the Myanmar Economic Bank in Naypyidaw.
Movers and Shakers of 2020: The Irrawaddy’s Persons of the Year
Movers and Shakers of 2020: The Irrawaddy’s Persons of the Year
5.6k
By The Irrawaddy 22 December 2020
It has been a uniquely challenging year, even by the standards of Myanmar’s recent history. The global COVID-19 pandemic has not spared the country, and while the toll has been severe Myanmar ranks third in ASEAN for cases and deaths the most dire predictions have not come to pass, thanks to the heroic efforts of the nation’s doctors, nurses and volunteer health workers, who have worked tirelessly and at great personal risk to ensure that every patient receives free hospital treatment and that the country’s quarantine centers continue to function. The nation’s stretched medical resources have been calmly and capably deployed by Health Minister Dr. Myint Htwe and State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and crucially supplemented by the donations of Myanmar citizens, rich and poor. The nation’s economic