Nationwide COVID-19 vaccination campaign officially launched

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh talks to health workers at the campaign launch on July 10 (Photo: VNA)

The nationwide COVID-19 vaccination campaign, the largest-ever immunisation drive in Vietnam, kicked off with a ceremony held on July 10.

Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said the campaign, to be conducted from July 2021 to April 2022, targeting people aged 18 and above, is the largest of its kind in the country, with the ultimate goal of protecting people’s health and lives and bring life back to normal early.

Under the Government and the Prime Minister’s directions, the Ministry of Health and relevant ministries and sectors have exerted every effort to acquire COVID-19 vaccines amid a global vaccine shortage.

So far, Vietnam has secured 105 million vaccine doses for this year and is working to get 150 million doses so as to achieve herd immunity in late 2021 or early 2022.

This July, more than 8 million doses are set to be delivered to Vietnam, which is on time for the pandemic’s complex developments in Ho Chi Minh City and some other southern localities, Long added.

Addressing the launch, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said to help the country eliminate the pandemic, the Party and State are determined to carry out the vaccine strategy.

Particularly, the COVID-19 vaccine fund has attracted great support from people both at home and abroad and enterprises. It has so far received donations worth more than 8 trillion VND (348 million USD), which is being spent on purchasing vaccines for people, he noted.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (front, fourth from right), Vietnamese officials, and representatives of international organisations at the launch on July 10 (Photo: VNA)

The first vaccine doses arriving in Vietnam have been prioritised for frontline forces, and they have been distributed in a fair, equal, open, transparent, flexible, and effective manner, he remarked, elaborating that the previous vaccine batches were provided for workers and residents in Bac Ninh and Bac Giang, which were being hit hard by COVID-19 in the past few months, but vaccines are now prioritised for HCM City and nearby provinces where the pandemic situation is developing complicatedly.

Stressing the need for good coordination in vaccine distribution, PM Chinh said to implement the vaccine strategy, the Party and State will also step up domestic production and import of vaccines so as to secure vaccine supply for every year.

He took this occasion to call for the entire people’s unanimity, solidarity, support, and sense of community responsibility to defeat the pandemic while also asking people to stay vigilant, even after getting inoculated, and seriously comply with the Health Ministry’s guidelines.

In his speech, the Government leader lauded efforts by frontline forces such as healthcare, military, and public security personnel, along with people’s support for the COVID-19 combat and the vaccination campaign.

Prior to the launch, PM Chinh visited the operation centre of the national COVID-19 vaccination campaign, based at the headquarters of the Ministry of National Defence.

This centre works around the clock and is connected with the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, the 63 provinces and cities, along with military regions across Vietnam./.