Ha Noi, 24 July 2021 – Viet Nam receives 3,000,060 doses of Moderna vaccine donated through the COVAX Facility by the United States Government, of which, 1,499,960 arrived in Ho Chi Minh City on 24 July 2021 and 1,500,100 doses will arrive in Hanoi on 25 July 2021. This is the second batch of Moderna vaccine to arrive in the country this month, bringing the total donation from the United States Government to Viet Nam to more than five million doses.
Photo credit: UNICEF
The donated vaccines are provided through the COVAX dose-sharing mechanism, which allows well-supplied countries to share vaccine doses with other countries to help protect the most at-risk populations globally. The vaccines will contribute to the aim of reaching 20 per cent coverage in low and middle income countries, as part of the Phase 1 vaccine allocation.
To date, Viet Nam has received 7,493,300 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in four shipments through the COVAX Facility including 5,000,100 doses of Moderna vaccine from the US Government and 2,493,200 doses of AstraZeneca. The COVAX Facility is co-led by the World Health Organization (WHO), Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness and Innovations (CEPI), GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, and UNICEF as the key delivery partner.
Since the arrival of the first shipment of vaccines from the COVAX Facility in early April, close to 4.5 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in Viet Nam, among them 353,601 second doses. The additional vaccines will help the Ministry of Health to expand coverage and reach more people from priority groups, contributing to attaining the country’s target of vaccinating more than 70 per cent of population by the end of the first quarter of 2022.
Background:
For several months, COVAX partners, WHO, CEPI, GAVI and delivery partner UNICEF, have been supporting the Government of Viet Nam in readiness efforts and the national rollout of COVID-19 vaccines. They have been especially active in developing a National Vaccination Plan, as Viet Nam is benefiting from the Advance Market Commitment (AMC). The AMC is an innovative financial mechanism to help secure global and equitable access for COVID-19 vaccines.