New Zealand has stepped forward to support Samoa's Ministry of Health (M.O.H.) protect children through the provision of more paediatric Pfizer vaccines and the installation of an oxygen plant.

The New Zealand High Commission in Samoa on Monday has confirmed that Aotearoa has committed to providing 80,000 doses of the paediatric Pfizer vaccine for children aged 5-11.

A total of 40,000 doses were delivered earlier this year to enable the rollout of the first dose for children in that age group.

The High Commission also advised that last Sunday an additional 30,000 doses were delivered to enable the Ministry's second dose campaign to begin.

New Zealand’s High Commissioner to Samoa, Dr Trevor Matheson has urged the public to vaccinate their children when the opportunity arises.

“Getting vaccinated is the best thing you can do to protect your whanau and your community,” he said in a statement.

Last week a New Zealand-funded oxygen generation plant at Tupua Tamasese Meaole National Hospital was commissioned. 

Engineers from manufacturer Atlas Copco New Zealand have been working to commission the plant which is now operational. The new plant expands Samoa’s oxygen generation capacity from 20-30 tanks a day to as many as 100 tanks a day.

The engineers travelled from New Zealand to Samoa to work on the project with approval from the Government of Samoa. 

After completing their mandatory isolation, the engineers commissioned the plant with the assistance of M.O.H. personnel and also trained local staff in the operation and maintenance of the oxygen generation plant.

The New Zealand Deputy High Commissioner, Taua Pati Gagau visited the plant last week to inspect the completed project.  

“One of the areas that Aotearoa New Zealand focuses on in its International Development Cooperation with Samoa is the health sector,” he said.  “Projects like this are part of Aotearoa New Zealand’s efforts to improve the capacity of Samoa’s health system and support Samoa to respond to COVID-19.”

The latest vaccination update by the M.O.H. last Friday showed 97.6 per cent of Samoa’s eligible population receiving their first dose of COVID-19 vaccines with 71.9 per cent receiving their second dose.

The Ministry also confirmed that 48,475 people aged 18 years and over have received their booster shot.

The M.O.H. vaccination teams have been able to administer 371,252 vaccinations since the start of the campaign in April last year. A total of 99.5 per cent of people 18 years and over have received their first doze of COVID-19 vaccination.

But only 91.3 per cent of the same age group have received their second doze for a target population that totals 121,891.

Out of 280,944 doses administered, a total of 121,229 people aged 18 and over have received the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine with 111,240 receiving the second dose.

The M.O.H. also revealed that a total of 27,178 people aged 12–17 have received their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine which accounts for 97.5 per cent of the targeted group. 

But only 23,003 or 82.5 per cent of the same age group have received their second dose with no records of anyone getting a third dose or booster shot. The target population for those aged 12–17 is 27,880. 

For children aged 5–11 a total of 37,394 received their first dose of the Paediatric Pfizer vaccine which is approximately 92 per cent of the eligible population. And a total of 2,733 of this age group have received second dose of the vaccine.