Japanese Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide has pledged to provide 3 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine to Pacific island nations, to be supplied through the global COVAX initiative.
Suga hosted the Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting on Friday. Leaders of 18 island nations and territories in the South Pacific joined via video link.
Suga said Japan will provide equipment and technical support to help the region establish cold chain logistics to transport vaccines. He said this will be part of a comprehensive assistance program that will also include support for medical systems and economic recovery.
Suga said the vaccine doses will be offered from around mid-July through the COVAX initiative for fair distribution. He said he hopes the 3 million shots will be delivered by around the end of the year.
Suga also highlighted Japan's goal of realizing a free and open Indo-Pacific, and called for the island nations' cooperation on maritime security, marine resource policy and climate change.
He said Japan plans to provide assistance for high-quality infrastructure with an emphasis on openness and transparency to establish a sustainable and resilient foundation for economic development in the region.
Source: ANNnewsCH
