Hanoi (VNA) – The Cambodian Ministry ofHealth on March 23 began a COVID-19 vaccination campaign for staff members offoreign embassies and consulate generals, and representatives of internationalorganisations in the country.

The vaccination is taking place at the NationalPediatric Hospital in Phnom Penh from March 23-26.

Staff members of the Vietnamese Embassy are the firstamong foreign diplomats in Cambodia to receive the vaccine shots.

All of the 90 people vaccinated on March 23 are in astable condition. 

According to the ministry, between February 10 andMarch 13, Cambodia administered Sinopharm and AstraZeneca vaccines to more than170,000 Cambodians.

Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen onMarch 19 said the ministry will organise a15-day AstraZeneca vaccinationcampaign for over 50,000 people from the age of 60 in all districts in PhnomPenh.

In a document dated February 24, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation also said all foreignnationals who are currently residing and working in Cambodia can get vaccinatedagainst COVID-19 at no charge in accordance with Cambodian COVID-19 vaccinationplans.

Last December, Hun Sen said the Southeast Asian nationhas planned to inoculate between 10 and 13 million people, or about 80 percentof the population.

Meanwhile, the Thai government on March 22 startedhuman trials of a domestically developed coronavirus vaccine and expects todeploy it next year, which its health minister said could give the country morefreedom with its vaccine policy, according to Bangkok Post.  

The home-grown vaccine candidate is being developed bystate drug maker, the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation (GPO), withMahidol University's Tropical Medicine Department and an American non-profitand uses an inactivated virus to trigger immunity.

The Thai vaccine candidate modifies the avianNewcastle Disease virus with a COVID-19 spike protein and is replicated usingegg-based technology, the GPO said.

Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said the vaccinewould give Thailand more options with less constraints.

Another homegrown vaccine is being developed byChulalongkorn University and uses Messenger RNA (mRNA) technology. It isexpected to start human trials soon.

Malaysia on March 22 announced it had established a 2.4million USD compensation fund to provide cash assistance for any COVID-19vaccine recipients who suffer severe reactions due to inoculations, the CNA said.

Malaysia has inoculated nearly 430,000 frontlineworkers, with the majority having received the first of two jabs of the vaccinejointly developed by US company Pfizer and German partner BioNTech.

Under the new fund, individuals requiring extendedhospitalisation due to a vaccine reaction will be eligible for 50,000 RM (12,171USD), or 500,000 RM if this results in permanent disability or death, HealthMinister Adham Baba said.

The minister said health authorities had recorded 20instances of adverse reactions to vaccination as of March 18, with symptomsranging from itching to shortness of breath and palpitations.

"There have not been any deaths linked to thevaccine," Adham told a news conference, without specifying the type ofvaccine he was referring to.

Malaysia's vaccination drive began on February 23using the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, with authorities only starting to administerthe vaccine developed by China's Sinovac Biotech on March 18./.