Prime Minister's Son Gets Vaccine Shot First in Cambodia

The Cambodian prime minister’s son was the first person in the country to get a coronavirus shot as the nation began its vaccination campaign on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Hun Sen, 68, had pledged to receive the vaccine first but current protocols require recipients to be between 18 and 59 years old.

He said his eldest son had volunteered to take his place.

Hun Manet, a senior military official, received a dose of the Sinopharm vaccine at Calmette Hospital in Phnom Penh.

Beijing has pledged to donate one million doses of the China-developed vaccine. The first 600,000 doses arrived on Sunday.

Hun Sen took to Facebook to thank China, a close ally of the longtime leader.

“Finally, Cambodia has officially started the vaccination programme for its people.

“This is the result of fruitful cooperation between Cambodia and China, the iron-clad friends,’’ he wrote.

According to Cambodia’s state-run media outlet Agence Kampuchea Presse, four hospitals started to administer Covid-19 jabs on Wednesday.

One will cater for senior ministers and top officials, another for mid-level authorities, a third for city and provincial governors, and a fourth for journalists.

Cambodia has defied expectations linked to its underfunded healthcare system and general poor governance by keeping the coronavirus largely under control.

It has recorded a total of 478 cases and no deaths from COVID-19.