Vietnam approves Moderna Covid vaccine for emergency use

It is the fifth to be approved after Russia's Sputnik V and those made by the U.S.'s Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech, China's Sinopharm and British-Swedish firm AstraZeneca.

It is developed from messenger RNA, or mRNA, which contains instructions for human cells to construct a harmless piece of the coronavirus called the spike protein that triggers an immune response in humans.

Some 53 countries and territories have been using the vaccine including the U.S., Canada, the European Union, the U.K., Israel, and Singapore.

The vaccine has proved 94.1 percent effective at preventing Covid-19 infection in people who received two doses and had no evidence of being previously infected, according to the U.S.'s Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to the health ministry, the Moderna vaccine to be supplied to Vietnam can be manufactured in Spain and France.

Zuellig Pharma Vietnam Co. Ltd will distribute the vaccine in Vietnam.

Vietnam has been using the AstraZeneca vaccine for its immunization program since early March, with almost 3.5 million people getting shots so far including 172,994 who have got both doses.

The country hopes to secure around 150 million vaccine doses this year to cover 70 percent of its population.