Australia pledges three million COVID-19 vaccines to Cambodia

[November 08, 2021]  PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Australia has pledged more than three million COVID-19 vaccine doses to Cambodia, Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Monday, which would help the Southeast nation give booster shots to its people.

The assurance came during a visit by Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne aimed at expanding bilateral ties.

Cambodia has vaccinated 87% of its more than 16 million people, one of Asia's highest inoculation rates.

"The Australian government has decided to provide Cambodia with 3,250,000 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, of which 1 million will be delivered to Cambodia before the end of this year," Hun Sen said on his official Facebook page.

The country has already given two million booster shots and begun inoculating children. Payne met Hun Sun and her counterpart Prak Sokhonn.

Hun Sen declared the country fully open last week and the government has said tourist locations for vaccinated travellers will also be reopened by the end of this month.

(Reporting by Prak Chan Thul; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)

[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content