The Asian Development Bank (ADB) complimented Cambodia and the Ministry of Health for bringing the Covid-19 pandemic under control, and for its successful vaccination campaign with more than 94 per cent of the population having had at least two doses.
Health minister Mam Bun Heng and ADB country director for Cambodia Jyotsana Varma met to discuss their cooperation on August 24.
Bun Heng welcomed Varma and congratulated her on her fulfilling missions in Cambodia. He thanked the ADB for its financial and credit support of health projects in the greater Mekong sub-region since 2017 in general, and for its work in response to Covid-19 in particular.
“I thank the ADB for supporting cooperation in fighting cross-border diseases,” he said.
Varma highlighted the many forms of cooperation it had facilitated to prevent the spread of cross-border diseases – information sharing, improved laboratories, hospital infection prevention and early warning systems.
These did not just have a part to play in the fight against Covid-19, but also malaria, tuberculosis and AIDS/HIV. “I offer my deep thanks to the health ministry for working alongside us,” she said.
At the August 18 ceremonial handover of 300,000 Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine doses donated by Spain, Prime Minister Hun Sen said Cambodia could be regarded as at the forefront of bringing the pandemic under control.
He said that even though new waves of the virus continued to occur, Cambodia has been able to reopen all sectors of its economy and society since November 2021, under the new normal.
And though Cambodia has not seen any deaths from Covid-19 for over four months now, Hun Sen urged authorities to continue to work hard to control the disease and speed up booster shots for all people including children aged 3 and older to curb new variants.
