Children from Three to Five to be Vaccinated
A girl receives a dose of the Sinovac Covid-19 coronavirus vaccine at a health centre in Phnom Penh on November 1, 2021, as Cambodia begins vaccinating children from aged five and older.
- By Ou Sokmean
- February 18, 2022 2:05 PM
Omicron hits one in four under-fives
PHNOM PENH--The Cambodian government has decided to allow children aged 3-5 to get the Covid-19 vaccine.
The decision comes after about 25 percent of children under five became infected with Omicron, Prime Minister Hun Sen said.
To prevent the spread, Hun Sen decided to give first and second doses to the children.
"My 21st grandchild, who was less than two years old, also contracted the virus. So we need to protect our children from this new Omicron virus," he said.
There was no better option than the basic dose vaccine for children under 5, of whom there are an estimated 700,000 across the country.
At the same time, he also allowed children aged over five to receive the third or booster dose.
Or Vandin, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health, said the booster campaign for children aged five and up will start on Feb. 21, while for children aged 3-5 it will be implemented from Feb. 23.
As of Feb. 17, 13.8 million Cambodians had received two doses while 6 million had received a third dose. Fourth doses are ongoing.
The Health Ministry on Feb. 17 reported 414 new cases of the Omicron variant, 388 of which were locally transmitted, leading to a total of 4,064 cases.
As of Feb. 17, Cambodia had 125,201 cases with 3,015 people dying and 119,880 recovering.
