Vietnam to purchase 20 million doses of Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine

The Vietnamese Government has decided to purchase 20 million doses of China’s Vero Cell COVID-19 vaccine produced by Sinopharm to support the ongoing national vaccination drive.

In a resolution released on September 21, the Government assigned the Ministry of Health to select bidders for a purchase contract to ensure the quality, efficiency and progress in the COVID-19 prevention and control.

Vero Cell is an inactivated vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) which stimulates the body’s immune system without risk of causing disease.

Human clinical trials show two doses administered at an interval of 21 days had the efficacy of 79% against symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection 14 days or more after the second dose.

The vaccine is recommended for people aged 18 and above. Two doses (0.5 mL each) are administered at a recommended interval of 3 to 4 weeks.

Vero Cell is one of the eight COVID-19 vaccines that has been approved by the Ministry of Health of Vietnam for emergency use.

Nearly 35.7 million vaccine doses have been administered nationwide, with 6.9 million people getting full jabs.

Vietnam aims to inoculate 70% of its population or 75 million people by early 2022 to achieve herd immunity.