Singapore: Singapore received its first shipment of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine on Monday.
It is the first country in Asia to take stock of these vaccines.
The shipment arrived in the city state via a Singapore Airlines cargo flight SQ7979 from Brussels on Monday evening.
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on his Facebook page that he was delighted, and hoped the news will give citizens something to cheer about for the year-end festive period.
Singapore approved the use of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine on December 14.
Read: Oman to receive first batch of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday
With a budget of over 1 billion Singapore dollars ($750 million) for vaccines, the city state has "placed multiple bets" by signing advance purchase agreements with vaccine makers including Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech, Moderna Inc. and China's Sinovac.
Authorities said vaccines will be given on a voluntary basis and will be free for citizens and long-term residents.
The prime minister said he and some older Cabinet ministers will be vaccinated early as a demonstration that the vaccines are safe.
Lee added priority will be given to healthcare workers and front-line personnel, as well as the elderly and other vulnerable people, before the rest of the population.
Singapore's expert committee on COVID-19 vaccination said in a separate statement that the Pfizer vaccine will not be given to pregnant women, immuno-compromised persons and those under the age of 16 until more data are available.
The country's transport minister also said Singapore was prepared to become a regional hub for the transportation of COVID-19 vaccines.
"We are ready to do this, and a lot of preparation work has gone in to make into making this as smooth as possible," said Singapore Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung.
AP
