The Australian government, in coordination with UNICEF, has supplied Vietnam with more than 1,900 vaccine refrigerators along with other medical supplies to assist the Southeast Asian country’s fight against COVID-19.

The Australia-UNICEF partnership on vaccine delivery assistance in Vietnam handed over 1,910 vaccine refrigerators, five million syringes, and 50,000 safety boxes during a ceremony at the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) in Hanoi on Tuesday.

At the event, Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long expressed his appreciation for the valuable and much needed support of the Australian government and UNICEF in the prevention of COVID-19.

Long also extended his gratitude toward the vaccine donations the Australian government has committed to Vietnam, stating that they will help the Southeast Asian country overcome these hard times.

Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne said she was proud that Australia is working in partnership with the Vietnamese government to facilitate COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

The syringes and safety boxes are being distributed to vaccination points as needed, while the 1,910 vaccine refrigerators will be delivered to hard-to-reach communes in 35 provinces.

With a storage capacity of 61 liters each, the refrigerators will be able to store enough vaccine doses for targeted COVID-19 vaccination in these communes.

Announced in April 2021, the Australia-UNICEF partnership provides a unique package that will assist Vietnam across a range of areas vital to the successful delivery of a mass immunization program against the respiratory disease.

The partnership is part of Australia’s comprehensive AU$60 million (US$44.2 million) support package for Vietnam’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

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