Vietnam invited to join in SARs-CoV-2 vaccine production

HANOI, July 1 – World Health Organisation (WHO) Representative to Vietnam Kidong Park has said the Vaccine Alliance wants to invite Vietnam to join in research and production of vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported.

During a meeting in Hanoi on June 30 chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Head of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control Vu Duc Dam, Park said the vaccine is expected to be available in late 2021.

He said the COVID-19 pandemic is spreading complicatedly worldwide with nearly 10.4 million infections and over 507,000 deaths. There are about 150,000 new cases and more than 4,000 fatalities on average each day. Notably, there is not any vaccine or medicine for treatment.

About the reopening of border gates and resumption of international flights with several countries and territories, experts warned that as the pandemic lingers, countries should carefully consider the decision.

Park said the WHO has recommended giving priority to necessary travel, considering monitoring capacity of each nation at border gates, public response and economic resilience.

Regarding vaccine production, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said two Vietnamese units are piloting anti-COVID-19 vaccine on mice. In the near future, it will be experimented on primates and humans.

He expected that the WHO and international organisations will help step up vaccine production in the country.

Deputy PM Dam, for his part, said Vietnam is willing to partner with the world in epidemic prevention and control. The country is now mastering technology to produce four kinds of test kits with high efficiency and reasonable costs, he said.

He hoped that the WHO and international organisations would help popularise such products worldwide, towards driving back the pandemic.

-- BERNAMA