Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (standing) presides over a meeting on COVID-19 response, Ha Noi, May 24, 2021. Photo: VGP

The strategy aims to better control COVID-19 pandemic situation at industrial parks and ensure supply chain and business operation would not be disrupted.

The Government chief also demanded inferior levels scramble to successfully realize the country’s vaccine strategy by expanding access to vaccine supply sources, designing mechanisms and policies to encourage vaccine research, development and manufacturing as well as proper vaccination plan.

A part from diversifying access to external vaccine sources, Viet Nam is also seeking to boost domestic vaccine research and development, acquire patients of vaccine makers, and set up partnership in vaccine production, according to Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long.

Nguyen said vaccines are the “effective weapon” against infectious diseases, including COVID-19.

The total funding includes VND16 trillion from the State budget while the rest will be mobilized from local budget, business community, and organizations.In a bid to secure funding for COVID-19 vaccines, the Ministry of Finance last week submitted a proposal to the Government for approval of a VND25.2 trillion (US$1.1 billion) COVID-19 vaccine fund.

The number of daily new COVID-19 cases from May 24

The fund will be used to purchase 150 COVID-19 vaccine doses for around 75 million Vietnamese this year.

As of 7:00 pm on May 24, Viet Nam recorded 5,404 COVID-19 cases, including 2,794 recoveries and 44 deaths.

Of the national tally, 2,348 cases have been confirmed in 30 cities and provinces since April 27, 2021 when the fourth wave of local transmissions broke out, with Bac Giang and Bac Ninh provinces hit hardest with 1,024 and 505 cases, respectively.

The latest wave may last longer than the previous ones, especially in Bac Giang and Bac Ninh provinces, due to emergence of multiple outbreaks in dozens of localities and two new variants are behind the surge of new community infection cases, Minister Nguyen told VGP on Monday.

Despite the aforesaid challenges, the current wave has been put under control has been basically controlled in many localities like Yen Bai, Dong Nai, Quang Ngai, Nghe An, Quang Ninh, Quang Nam, Hai Phong, Quang Tri, Dak Lak, Thanh Hoa, Thai Nguyen, Ninh Binh, Tuyen Quang, and Son La while new cases in other localities had been quarantined before testing positive for the virus, Nguyen added./.