Forto on vaccine procurement: Bosnalijek will be the official importer of Sputnik V vaccines

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The KS Government managed to arrange the procurement of 200,000 Sputnik V vaccines, said Prime Minister Edin Forto at today's press conference, announcing the arrival of the first doses in June.

The vaccines are being procured in cooperation with the FBiH Government; a total of 500,000 vaccines have been agreed upon, of which 300,000 are for the FBiH.

"We agreed on $9.95 per dose, which is the price every country received. Bosnalijek, which will be the official importer, decided to take the minimum legal margins, without profit," said Prime Minister Forto.

Forto said that KS competed with countries like Brazil, which requested a million doses.

"We asked the Russian Embassy to intervene, we called everyone to get in line. In the end, what succeeded was Bosnalijek and their office, who introduced us to that crucial meeting and official negotiations. We still managed to be treated as a government body," said Forto.

Speaking about the risks of this process, Forto said that they do not have exact delivery dates for all vaccines.

"The first 20 to 30 thousand doses in June. Only after we received that did we start signing the contract. We are procuring 200,000 for KS and 300,000 for FBiH. For each delivery, we pay 50 percent for that delivery, and when they arrive, we pay the other half," said Forto.

"I am asking the KS Assembly for an urgent session where we will present the contract and request authorization for me, on behalf of the KS Government, to sign that contract, and for the FBiH Health Insurance Fund to pay for the portion of vaccines for KS and to hand it over as is to the FBiH Government as co-signatory, because they also have their quantities, and for them to pay their quantities and send it to Moscow for signing," said the Prime Minister.

He emphasized that this was a good example of cooperation with the FBiH Government, regardless of political differences.

"This is the first time that a direct contract for vaccines, apart from Covax, is being made in FBiH. We were condemned to do this ourselves and take the risks," said Forto.