The supply of COVID-19 vaccines to North Korea through the COVAX Facility global procurement program is expected to be delayed.

Speaking to Voice of America, the World Health Organization's representative to North Korea Edwin Salvador said that Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, which co-leads the COVAX program, informed North Korean authorities about the delay on March 25.

The official said that vaccine supply to the North is not expected before May and the delay is not restricted to North Korea but applies to all countries receiving vaccines from COVAX.

Salvador also said the vaccination plan submitted by Pyongyang indicates that healthcare workers and senior citizens will take priority in receiving the jabs.

COVAX earlier assigned some ​one-point-99 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine produced by India's Serum Institute to North Korea and said one-point-seven million doses will be delivered by May.