About 180,000 high-risk personnel in Guangdong, the most populous province in the country, have received their COVID-19 vaccines free of charge as of Dec 22, without any serious side effects reported.

Groups inoculated include workers involved in imported goods cold chain logistics, quarantine venues, customs and immigration inspection, cross-border transport, healthcare, frontline epidemic control and public transport, and those working or studying overseas.

They are considered to be more prone to infection due to their situations. Their vaccination is meant both to protect their health and control the epidemic, said Duan Yufei, director of the provincial health commission, at a press conference in provincial capital Guangzhou on Wednesday.

All people in the key groups, who are physically suitable for taking the COVID-19 vaccine, should receive the immunization, Duan said.

The vaccination would cover the general public after vaccines are officially launched and the supply increases, he said.

Even after vaccines go into the market, the public should still follow full epidemic control measures for a considerable period of time.

Guangdong remains a low-risk region and the existing measures have proved effective in controlling the epidemic, he said.