The Ministry of Health is due to meet Chinese state-owned Covid-19 vaccine maker China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm) and relevant parties in the coming week and discuss plans for a domestic jab factory, a senior official said on December 10.

Speaking during the reception of the latest batch of Covid-19 jabs at Phnom Penh International Airport, ministry secretary of state York Sambath noted that Prime Minister Hun Sen has issued a directive to open the planned factory, as well as instructions to “work closely with China”.

Sinopharm has expressed willingness to work with Chinese ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian and the Kingdom on the project, she said.

Wang on December 6 confirmed that Beijing had acknowledged Hun Sen’s earlier remarks on a potential vaccine plant in the Kingdom, and that Sinopharm was in touch with the Cambodian health ministry.

“Perhaps next year, Cambodians will be able to take domestically-produced Covid vaccines,” he said.

Hun Sen also corroborated that the project had received endorsement from Beijing and Sinopharm, claiming that an agreement had been signed between unspecified companies.