MANILA - The Philippines on Sunday received its first shipment of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine containing 249,600 doses, as the country tries to ramp up its vaccination drive.

The initial delivery of the US drugmaker's coronavirus jab arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 around 11 p.m.

JUST IN: Plane carrying the first batch of Moderna vaccines for the Philippines has landed in Manila.

Part of this batch of vaccines will allocated for the private sector. @ABSCBNNews pic.twitter.com/P186LHxRaE

— Jervis Manahan (@JervisManahan) June 27, 2021

The Philippine government will get 150,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine while 99,600 doses will go to ICTSI, the company of ports billionaire Enrique Razon who procured it for the private sector.

• Moderna vaccines arriving June 27, PH to receive 'more than enough' vaccine doses: envoy

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Moderna said in April its vaccine showed strong protection against the coronavirus six months after people received their second shot, with efficacy of more than 90 percent against all cases of COVID-19 and more than 95 percent against severe COVID-19.

The jab should also remain effective against new coronavirus variants first reported in India, Brazil, UK, and South Africa, the company said.

• Pfizer, Moderna vaccines effective against Indian variants: study
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The Philippines aims to vaccinate at least 58 million individuals this year to achieve herd immunity against the coronavirus. A total of 8,050,711 jabs have been administered nationwide as of June 18, government said.

• PH administers more than 8 million COVID-19 vaccine doses: gov't

--With a report from Reuters