The second lot in the latest batch of over 3 million doses of COVID-19 Moderna vaccine granted by the US through the COVAX Facility was handed over to Viet Nam late July 25.

At the ceremony to receive the vaccine (Photo: baochinhphu.vn)

The ceremony to receive the lot of 1,500,100 doses of vaccine was attended by Deputy Health Minister Tran Van Thuan and Deputy Foreign Minister To Anh Dung, along with UN Resident Coordinator in Viet Nam Kamal Malhotra, UNICEF Acting Representative in Viet Nam Lesley Miller, and Chargé d'Affaires, a.i. of the US Embassy in Hanoi Christopher Klein. 

Addressing the ceremony, the two deputy ministers appreciated the timely and significant support of the US through the COVAX Facility for Viet Nam, especially amid complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country and the serious shortage of COVID-19 vaccine around the world.

They called on countries and international organisations to continue sharing vaccine, medical supplies and medicine in order to early put the pandemic under control and bring life back to normal.

The UN Resident Coordinator, the UNICEF Acting Representative and the Chargé d'Affaires, a.i. of the US Embassy in Hanoi pledged to continue supporting Viet Nam, the region and the world as a whole to access vaccine and repel the COVID-19 pandemic.

The batch is part of the 80 million doses of COVID-19 that US President Joe Biden has committed to sharing with the world.

So far the US has supplied Viet Nam with more than five million doses of COVID-19 Moderna vaccine, which are part of the 23 million doses it committed to 20 countries/territories in Asia.

Viet Nam has received more than 11 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine from countries and partners, including the COVAX Facility.

Source: VNA