The establishment of a fund to accelerate the purchase of coronavirus vaccines is essential to meeting the country’s vaccination target, the Vietnamese Ministry of Finance said in a proposal submitted to the national government.

The Ministry of Finance on Wednesday confirmed it has asked the government to found a COVID-19 vaccination fund which would help it meet current coronavirus prevention and control targets.

According to the ministry, the proposed fund will receive, manage, and use foreign and domestic financial support to speed up the purchase and use of COVID-19 vaccines.

The ministry also emphasized that the fund will be managed in a way that ensures transparency, thrift, and efficiency.

It will also comply with relevant accounting rules under Vietnam’s Accounting Law and the ministry’s guidelines.

The Ministry of Health expects to buy 150 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine in order to vaccinate about 75 million people out of the country’s population of 98 million at an estimated cost of VND25.2 trillion (US$1.1 billion).

Of that amount, the cost of purchasing vaccines will be about VND21 trillion ($909 million), while the rest will be spent on transportation, storage, and injection.

The finance ministry expects that the central budget will allocate about VND16 trillion ($694 million) for this expenditure while the remainder will rely on contributions from businesses and organizations.

However, if the pandemic prolongs, the annual demand for vaccines will increase and the cost of buying the jabs will be larger, making it difficult for Vietnam to meet its goal to inoculate its entire population.

More than one million doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been used across the country, and nearly 29,000 people have received two shots as required, the health ministry reported on Wednesday.

The ministry reported 44 COVID-19 cases at noon on Thursday, all of which were detected in isolated or locked-down areas.  

Overall, Vietnam has documented 4,764 infections since the pandemic began in early 2020, with 39 deaths, the ministry said.

The country has registered 1,722 domestic cases in 30 provinces and cities since April 27.

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