PHNOM PENH (UCAN): Cambodian efforts to inoculate 80 per cent of its population against the Covid-19 coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic are gathering pace, with Australia emerging as its biggest donor, pledging of US$28 million ($217 million) to help vaccinate 1.5 million people.
Australian embassy in Phnom Penh and the Cambodian government announced the initiative on February 1. Inoculations will be made possible through a Covax facility to be approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
“As a neighbour and long-standing friend of Cambodia, we are pleased to be able to lend a hand in this time of need,” Australian ambassador, Pablo Kang, said.
“We are grateful for Australia’s support, which will help us meet critical needs of our people and economy,” Aun Pornmoniroth, Cambodia’s deputy prime minister, said.
“We applaud Australia and her people for their solidarity and commitment in jointly fighting against this pandemic so that we can recover and prosper together,” Pornmoniroth said.
Kang said that although Cambodia has so far avoided serious health impacts from the pandemic, widespread vaccination remains critical for preventing future outbreaks and rebuilding economic activity.
He also said the Australian package would also help Cambodia to distribute and administer vaccines, to monitor the safety and efficacy of vaccinations, and to ensure Cambodians have access to clear information about the vaccination process.
‘In recognition that nobody is safe until everyone is safe, our support is likely to help vaccinate at least 1.5 million Cambodians and will go a long way towards supporting widespread access to WHO-approved vaccines in Cambodia’
Pablo Kang, Australian ambassador to Cambodia
“In recognition that nobody is safe until everyone is safe, our support is likely to help vaccinate at least 1.5 million Cambodians and will go a long way towards supporting widespread access to WHO-approved vaccines in Cambodia,” Kang added.
China has promised one million doses of its Sinopharm vaccine for 500,000 Cambodians, which requires two jabs for each person. They are expected to be available later in February and are favoured because they can be stored at temperatures of two to eight degrees Celsius. Some other vaccines need to be stored at minus 70 degrees.
On a recent regional tour, China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, also promised vaccines for Myanmar, Indonesia and the Philippines amid suggestions that it is using vaccination for diplomatic leverage with vaccine deliveries tied to trade and investment deals.
Cambodia has also asked India to contribute vaccines that can be stored at up to 18 degrees Celsius.
Cambodia has emerged relatively unscathed from the pandemic with just 466 confirmed Covid-19 cases. Nearly all were people arriving from abroad, either across land borders or by air. To date, there have been 443 recoveries and no deaths.
Foreign assistance packages are in addition to vaccines Cambodia will receive from the multilateral WHO-Covax, which hopes to cover about three per cent of populations in the world’s poorest countries within the first six months of 2021.
