The US has contributed over US$13 million to help Vietnam in its fight against Covid-19, according to the US Embassy in Hanoi.

US Ambassador to Vietnam Daniel J. Kritenbrink and Vietnam's Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long at the donation of ventilator to Vietnam in September 2020. Photo: VT

The support includes the areas of surveillance, laboratory system strengthening, biosafety/biosecurity, emergency management and operations, workforce development and training, zoonotic diseases, infection prevention and control, and risk communication and community engagement.

Over the past 20 years, the US has invested more than US$1 billion in health assistance for Vietnam, and we built upon our long-standing cooperation in the health sector to strengthen Vietnam’s capacity to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On April 1, US Ambassador to Vietnam Daniel J. Kritenbrink congratulates Vietnam on their first shipment of Covid-19 vaccines from the COVAX campaign, with the arrival of 811,200 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

US Ambassador Daniel J. Kritenbrink. Photo: USAID

“I continue to be impressed by Vietnam’s proactive leadership in controlling this pandemic,” remarked Daniel J. Kritenbrink. “We are proud of our partnership and long history of collaboration in health to prevent, detect, and respond to serious infectious disease threats, and we are pleased to see COVAX support to Vietnam.”

Since the pandemic broke out in Vietnam, the ambassador said that the embassy would stand together with Vietnam in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

“It is the challenging time. As strong partners, the US and Vietnam will get through this together… Partners stand together and we stand together with Vietnam in this fight,” Kritenbrink affirmed.

Contributions to global fight

So far, the US has provided an initial amount of US$2 billion out of US$4 billion it committed to funding the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (COVAX AMC), the innovative financing instrument supporting the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines to 92 low- and middle-income countries.

The funding makes the US the single largest contributor to the global Covid-19 vaccine access under the COVAX Facility that Vietnam is one of recipients.

The US contributions to COVAX, through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), will support the purchase and delivery of safe and effective Covid-19 vaccines for the world’s most vulnerable and at-risk populations in 92 nations, including Vietnam.

This support is critical to controlling the pandemic, slowing the emergence of new variants, and helping to restart the global economy. The US is committed to collaborating with partners and governments to support global Covid-19 vaccination efforts.