Hanoi (VNA) - Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long has said thatVietnam will focus on the research and production of homegrown COVID-19vaccines alongside imports, viewing this as a long-term strategy.

He made the remarks during a meeting of the National Steering Committeefor COVID-19 Prevention and Control in Hanoi on March 5, chaired by Deputy PrimeMinister Vu Duc Dam.

Long emphasised the need to strictly observe the “Vaccine + 5K” message:khau trang (facemasks), khu khuan (disinfecting), khoang cach (distancing),khong tu tap (no gatherings), and khai bao y te (health declarations).

He added that access to vaccines faces various obstacles due to hugedemand amid limited supply.

While Pfizer’s vaccine is more than 90 percent effective and the twojabs of the AstraZeneca vaccine are 76 percent and 81 percent effective, this alsoshows that people can still catch the virus after being vaccinated, hence theneed to continue following the 5K message, Long explained.

Vietnam is among 92 countries to receive vaccines through the COVAXFacility in the first phase. COVAX mainly uses the AstraZeneca vaccine,providing 5 million doses to the country this year and with 25 million set toarrive in 2022.

The minister also refuted remarks from some companies saying they can provideAstraZeneca vaccine, confirming that all types of vaccine must receive approvalfrom the Ministry of Health (MoH).

Vaccinations using the recently-imported AstraZeneca are expected to beginon March 8, under Government Resolution No 21.

More than 117,600 doses of the vaccine manufactured in the Republic ofKorea arrived in Vietnam on February 24.

The MoH has devised a procedure to keep a close watch on immunisedpeople through electronic health records, he said.

Nguyen Dac Vinh, Deputy Chief of the Office of the Party CentralCommittee, said the idea that vaccines can fully tackle the pandemic should be repudiated,and preventive measures must still be observed to reduce the risk of community infection.

Members of the Steering Committee directed the vaccination campaign toensure equitable access, with vaccination to be rolled out in a prompt and cautiousmanner. They also underlined the need to stay prepared to deal with any problemsencountered during the campaign.

For his part, Dam, who is also head of the Committee, underlined thatVietnam has been successful in curbing the spread of the pandemic even beforeany vaccine was approved.

Therefore, in the time to come, relevant agencies need to take theinitiative in battling COVID-19 by following the 5K message along with vaccinations,which are a new weapon in the fight./.