Duterte: China to donate 400,000 doses more of COVID-19 vaccines

China will donate to the Philippines 400,000 doses more of COVID-19 vaccine, President Rodrigo Duterte said on Thursday.

The President made the announcement during the inauguration of new school buildings at the Lawang Bato National High School and Canumay East National High School in Valenzuela City.

“China will give us another 400 doses, making their donation to this country at one million doses,” Duterte said. He did not name the brand of the vaccine. 

China already donated to the Philippines 600,000 doses of Sinovac vaccines, which  started the country's much-awaited national vaccination program against COVID-19.

The shipment arrived in the country on February 28 and was rolled out at Metro Manila's referral hospitals and other institutions on Monday.

Duterte on Thursday evening will also receive at the Villamore Airbase 487,200 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines from the COVAX facility.

Both AstraZeneca and Sinovac secured emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) but the FDA did not recommend Sinovac for health workers since the vaccine's efficacy rate onyl reached 50.4% in that group. -NB, GMA News