Vietnam will start vaccinating children aged 5 to 11 in the second quarter of April with the vaccines funded by the Government of Australia and the US.

Australia will donate 13.7 million doses of Pfizer and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines and the US will supply 10 million doses, said Vietnam’s Ministry of Health, adding that both sources are enough for inoculating all children of that age group in Vietnam.

The doses from both donors are estimated to cost VND3.4 trillion (US$148 million).

Regarding the Australian donations, the first shipment of nearly 10 million doses will arrive in Vietnam this week and the second delivery will be made in April.

Vaccinating children aged 12-17 in Thanh Xuan District, Hanoi in November 2021. Photo: Khanh Huy/The Hanoi Times

Vietnam’s vaccine rollout plan for children aged 5-11 was revealed by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in December 2021. In January 2021, the government approved a plan to buy 21.9 million doses of Pfizer vaccine for children.

Vietnam hopes that by vaccinating this age group, the country will soon proceed with the school opening plan. So far, the country has completed inoculating children aged 12-17 and considered injecting vaccines to those aged 3-5.

Vaccination for children is voluntary in Vietnam but the Ministry of Health advises parents to consider vaccine effectiveness against Covid-19 rather than the side effects it might cause.

“When this vaccine is available, we will deploy injections step by step cautiously, ensuring that vaccination safety is a top priority,” Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long told local media.  

Prof. Nguyen Van Tuan at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), a well-known health expert of Vietnamese origin, said based on scientific proof and data from different countries, Vietnam should vaccinate children aged 5-11.

Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine was approved for children aged 5-11 in October 2021 by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It said the vaccine was found to be 90.7% effective in preventing Covid-19 in children 5 through 11.

“As a mother and a physician, I know that parents, caregivers, school staff, and children have been waiting for today’s authorization. Vaccinating younger children against COVID-19 will bring us closer to returning to a sense of normalcy,” said Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock at this event.

The Pfizer Covid-19 Vaccine for children 5 through 11 years of age is administered as a two-dose primary series, 3 weeks apart, but is a lower dose (10 micrograms) than that used for individuals 12 years of age and older (30 micrograms).