PANAMA CITY, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- A representative of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Alba Maria Ropero, said Friday that there were 200 million people in Latin America who needed A/H1N1 vaccines.

    Ropero reported at the end of a meeting regarding the purchase of A/H1N1 vaccines that they had held a poll among the governments to ascertain the specific amount of vaccines needed and had made an allotment in the PAHO.

    The first vaccines were expected to be available at the end of November or early December, she announced.

    "Some countries are purchasing the vaccines through the Rotary Fund, and others are receiving donations from the World Health Organization, including the poorest countries of the Americas," she added.

    Ropero disclosed that those receiving free vaccines would be the poorest countries in Latin America such as Haiti, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Paraguay, Suriname and Bolivia.

    The PAHO began its first sub-regional meeting on Wednesday in Panama to discuss the A/H1N1 flu situation in Latin America. The second workshop would be held in Peru's capital, Lima, to identify the vaccine needs in South America.