Vietnam to launch largest ever COVID-19 vaccination campaign

The Ministry of Health is going to launch the largest ever vaccination campaign in an effort to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic.

Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said his ministry has been trying to seek and negotiate with partners to secure sufficient COVID-19 vaccines for domestic use, while speeding up the research and production of vaccines locally.

Vietnam has so far reached agreements to get approximately 120 million doses from vaccine manufacturers and partners such as AstraZeneca, COVAX Facility, Pfizer/BioNTech, and Sputnik V. It is now working towards a goal of securing 150 million doses in 2021 to inoculate up to 75% of its population.

Vietnam has successfully carried out a number of vaccination drives, but this is the largest vaccination campaign of its kind that requires the engagement of other ministries and agencies, Dr Long said at a meeting on June 15 to run the campaign.

According to the minister, the military will get involved in the preservation and transportation of vaccines.

Vietnam will set up eight vaccine storage facilities, of which one is located at the High Command of the Hanoi Capital and seven others in seven military zones nationwide. When the vaccines arrive at the airport, they will be immediately transported to these facilities for preservation.

An online vaccination network will be established that makes public the number of people to be vaccinated and the number of doses to be administered.

Dr Long stressed that safety is top priority and that a National Steering Committee for Immunization Safety will work online around the clock to direct and monitor the work.

The committee is headed by the Minister of Health. The Command of the campaign is headquartered at the Ministry of National Defense, led by a Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army, alongside the participation of other officials from the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Information and Communications, and Ministry of Transport.