In addition to the over $5B Jamaica Dollars that the Government of Jamaica has allocated to spend on procuring the COVID-19 vaccines, the Ministry of Health & Wellness is expected to expend some $978M Jamaica Dollars on other resources to ensure a successful national vaccination programme. This programme will see 2 Million Jamaicans receiving the COVID-19 Vaccine by March 2022.
Minister of Health & Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton noted that “Jamaica has a successful history of vaccination, but we have to ensure that we strengthen the existing system and make the necessary adjustments to accommodate the peculiarities associated with the COVID-19 Vaccines. Vaccination, of course, represents a key part of the public health response to this global pandemic.”
Of the J$978M, 30% or J$285,957,661 will be spent procuring 3.5 Million syringes, and another 25% or J$232M will be spent on hiring 80 temporary staff members across the four regional health authorities. The other large portions of the budget have been allocated to placement of public education materials (7% or J$64,380,000) and the upgrade of the web-based Vaccine Management System (6% or J$54,375,000) – an inventory application that tracks the movement of vaccines across the island and produces reports on demand and uptake.
The other major line items in the budget include a 5% expenditure on overtime and other staff benefits to be paid (J$46,200,000) and a 4% spend on the printing of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) materials (J$ 36,250,000) and on Data Management (J$36,000,000) respectively. See the complete COVID-19 Vaccination Budget Allocation below:
