Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa said the country has received its first batch of COVID-19 vaccines from the Chinese Government to fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

The country received its first delivery of 200,000 doses of Sinopharm on Monday at the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport in the capital city Harare.

The Chinese coronavirus vaccine was donated by the East Asian nation’s government while another batch of 600,000 doses purchased by Zimbabwe is expected to arrive early next month.

Mnangagwa tweeted “The first batch of vaccines for Zimbabwe has been successfully delivered. We start vaccinating Zimbabweans this week!

“The faster our country is protected against this virus, the faster Zimbabwe’s economy can flourish.”

Recall that four government ministers have died of coronavirus in Zimbabwe, prompting the country to further tighten lockdown measures.

According to media reports, several other cabinet ministers are fighting for their lives in a private hospital.

 “We are in a dark cloud that we have to clear very soon,” deputy health minister John Mangwiro had said.

Mangwiro revealed plans to intensify the current lockdown, which has been in place since early January and includes a strict nightly curfew.

Restaurants, bars, and gyms have also been forced to close.

Zimbabwe has registered over 30,500 cases of the deadly infection since the start of the pandemic, including more than 960 deaths.