Viet Nam receives Poland-donated vaccines

The Ministry of Health held a ceremony on Monday morning to receive 501,600 AstraZeneca vaccine doses donated by Poland.

The vaccines were transported to the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology for storage after landing in Noi Bai International Airport on August 21.

On August 17, Poland announced donation of over 501,000 AstraZeneca doses and medical equipment worth US$ 4 million to Viet Nam, making the recipient the first non-Europe partner country to receive Poland’s vaccine and medical gifts. The medical equipment is expected to arrive in Viet Nam in early September.

The two sides’ authorized agencies are discussing to soon transfer more than three million vaccine doses Poland committed to sharing with Viet Nam.

On August 13, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh established a governmental working group on vaccine diplomacy in an effort to increase the country’s vaccine supply.

Pham had 16 phone talks with his foreign counterparts and sent letters to leaders of other 22 countries and ten international organizations in a bid to speed up vaccine access.

So far, Viet Nam has received over 23 million COVID-19 vaccine doses, of which 22, 17 million doses have been administered with 1.8 million people fully vaccinated.