Prime Minister asks for AstraZeneca’s support in vaccine strategy implementation

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (centre), Nitin Kapoor (third, left), and other participants in the meeting on June 29 (Photo: chinhphu.vn)

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh had an emergency meeting with AstraZeneca in Hanoi on June 29, asking the firm to create the best possible conditions to help Vietnam effectively implement the COVID-19 vaccine strategy.

Nitin Kapoor, President for Asia Area Frontier Markets at AstraZeneca and Chairman and General Director of AstraZeneca Vietnam, highly valued the Vietnamese Government’s efforts to carry out the vaccine strategy fruitfully and pursue the “twin targets” amid the pandemic-caused difficulties facing regional countries.

He assessed the pandemic prevention and control work and the protection of people’s health in Vietnam as good and effective.

PM Chinh urged AstraZeneca to create optimal conditions for Vietnam to secure at least 10 million COVID-19 vaccine doses between now and early August so as to implement the vaccine strategy and provide free vaccination for people in a timely, safe, and effective manner.

He called for the firm’s coordination and assistance for Vietnam to produce vaccine in the country and also asked for reduction of vaccine prices.

In response, Kapoor said the world is facing a shortage of COVID-19 vaccine supply since the pandemic is developing more complicatedly and unpredictably while the global vaccine production capacity remains modest.

However, he promised to persuade the parent company to deliver at least 8 million vaccine doses to Vietnam in July and early August. He also pledged to report the country’s proposal to the company for consideration of giving the best possible prices of vaccine to Vietnam.

AstraZeneca will help Vietnam manufacture vaccine and invest in the production of medicine for several diseases in the country while promoting programmes to support the local healthcare sector, Kapoor noted.

He expressed his belief that with the Government and the PM’s drastic action, the whole political system’s engagement, and people’s support, the fight against COVID-19 in Vietnam will be successful and the country will achieve the “twin targets” of effectively combating the pandemic and boosting socio-economic development./.