Ho Kham, a 101-year-old Cambodian woman, receives her second dose of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine at an inoculation site in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on July 2, 2021. Ho Kham has become one of the oldest persons in Cambodia to be fully vaccinated with two doses of China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine.Photo:Xinhua

Ho Kham, a 101-year-old Cambodian woman, has become one of the oldest persons in Cambodia to be fully vaccinated with two doses of China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine.

Riding in a wheelchair assisted by her son, the lady went to an inoculation site in capital Phnom Penh on Friday for her second shot of the jab.

Kham, who also holds a French citizenship, has volunteered to get vaccinated with the Sinovac vaccine after her French doctor decided that she was safe to receive the vaccine, according to her 65-year-old son, Seng Sarin.

"She's keen to get the jab by herself because she wants to stay safe during the pandemic," he told reporters on behalf of his mother, who can only speak a little Khmer language because she had been living in France since 1980 and just returned to Cambodia four years ago.

"The vaccine is quite safe, I see no any side effect since she has gotten her first dose," Sarin added.

Cambodian health ministry's secretary of state and spokeswoman Or Vandine said Kham's vaccination would inspire others to follow suit in order to protect themselves from COVID-19.

"This clearly shows that vaccine is very important to protect lives," she told reporters. "Either Sinovac or other vaccines approved by the World Health Organization are safe, effective and save lives."

She said that so far, eight persons aged between 100 and 103 years old in the country have received the vaccine.

Minister Counselor Chang Jian from the Chinese Embassy in Cambodia presented the lady a bunch of flower and conveyed best wishes to her.

Chang said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen and with the close cooperation between China and Cambodia, Cambodia will win the battle against the pandemic.

Cambodia has been accelerating its COVID-19 vaccinations, targeting at least 10 million of its 16 million population by November as new infection rates continue to rise.

The Southeast Asian nation reported 966 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, pushing the national caseload to 52,350, the health ministry said, adding that 32 new fatalities were registered, bringing the overall death toll to 660.

The kingdom launched a vaccination drive on Feb. 10, starting from capital Phnom Penh and Kandal province before expanding it to other provinces recently.

As of July 1, some 7.4 million vaccine doses have been administered in the kingdom, with 4.3 million people receiving their first dose and 3.1 million having completed the two-dose inoculation, Vandine said. 

Ho Kham, a 101-year-old Cambodian woman, is seen at an inoculation site in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on July 2, 2021. Ho Kham has become one of the oldest persons in Cambodia to be fully vaccinated with two doses of China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine.Photo:Xinhua