Sri Lankan students pursuing higher studies in the UK will be able to access the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine that is being rolled out across the country.
The UK Government has expressed its commitment to support international students during Covid-19, with universities’ Minister Michelle Donelan writing an open letter to students thanking them for their patience at provisions introduced to tackle the spread of the virus. She has confirmed that the students will not be charged to apply for testing or treatment for Covid-19. The UK Government has secured early access to over 357 million vaccine doses through several vaccine developers. UK and EU Managing Director at Study Group, James Pitman said, “We are anticipating some positivity for the forthcoming academic year and would like to take this opportunity to thank our students for showing patience throughout the global pandemic.
This vaccine, combined with effective treatments, will be significant in making COVID-19 a manageable disease, thereby allowing us to return to normality soon, so that, going-forward, we can welcome a greater number of Sri Lankan students to the UK.” In the wake of the global pandemic and locked international borders, UK universities and their International Study Centres have been offering blended learning to students this year, which is a mix of face-to-face and virtual teacher-led learning. With access to Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, Sri Lankan students can now be reassured and expect to return on-campus earlier by next year.