SABECO shows its support for vaccine rollout

The private sector, including foreign enterprises, could help speed up the country’s vaccination efforts

Right after the government called on businesses to support vaccine rollouts and a $1.1 billion vaccine fund, SABECO began exploring ways to work with relevant authorities to source COVID-19 vaccines. The major beverage group boasts 12,000 employees across the country.

“As a company with a long history in Vietnam, SABECO has always been committed to contributing to the development and prosperity of Vietnam and its people,” said general director Bennett Neo. “We are committed to our role of being a responsible corporate citizen, and we show it through practical actions to ensure we prioritise the safety of all our employees. As Vietnam faces an extremely difficult time due to the pandemic, we are willing more than ever to stand side-by-side with Vietnam to fight this battle.”

In regular meetings on pandemic prevention and control, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has emphasised the need to be faster and more effective on the vaccine front. In phone calls and working sessions with foreign partners, the Prime Minister has been consistent in his goal of calling for more vaccines, and administered at a faster speed.

The private sector, including foreign enterprises, could help speed up the country’s vaccination efforts. Vietnam aims to secure 150 million doses of vaccines to immunise 75 per cent of its population this year, according to the Ministry of Health (MoH).

Vietnam began its vaccination drive in early March using the AstraZeneca vaccine. More than one million shots as of the end of last month had been given to frontline medical workers and members of community-based anti-pandemic groups. Four Vietnamese-made vaccines are currently under development.

Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said the ministry has coordinated with other ministries and agencies as well as encouraged all localities, businesses, and units involved in the search and import of COVID-19 vaccines to have the fastest, earliest and widest source of vaccines used for all Vietnamese people.

In 2020, SABECO collaborative with its subsidiaries and suppliers, to creat an aid programme for medical and logistical support personnel as well as the patients being monitored in quarantine centres across the country.

Its initiative not only reflects the company’s commitment to communities where Sabeco operates, but also to its ecosystem of subsidiaries and suppliers, as the aid programme is a part of SABECO’s efforts to help them sustain their businesses and ensure stable work for their employees in these difficult times.

SABECO has 44 member companies in ecosystem and more than 12,000 employees. "This initiative reflects our values of always prioritising our people and coming up with initiatives that contribute to the sustainable development and wellbeing of Vietnam and its people,” said Neo