HCMC – The Government on October 6 issued a resolution to buy 400,000 doses of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine, which will expire on October 31, from Hungary.
The Government also agreed that the number of doses bought and donated to the country this year would exceed the number stated in a previous resolution of some 150 million, the local media reported.
A contractor will be chosen to buy the 400,000 AstraZeneca doses in line with Article 26 of the Bidding Law.
The Ministry of Health was asked to quickly carry out the purchase and take responsibility for assessing the quality of the vaccine.
On the same day, Australia handed over 300,000 doses of AstraZeneca to Vietnam. The doses, produced in Australia, arrived in Hanoi last week. Australia also donated more than 600,000 medical masks and 40,800 protective suits.
So far, Australia has donated 700,000 doses of the vaccine to Vietnam as part of its commitment to share 1.5 million doses with Vietnam.
Robyn Mudie, Australian ambassador to Vietnam, said Australia would help Vietnam purchase 3.7 million more doses through an agreement with UNICEF and the Vietnamese Ministry of Health, raising Australia’s committed vaccine donations to Vietnam to 5.2 million doses.
Moreover, Australia is working with UNICEF to support the upgrade of cold storage facilities, training for healthcare workers, communication and vaccination in remote provinces in Vietnam.
