Singapore, Jun 28 (IANS): Singapore will work with various parties to develop vaccines and distribute them fairly and quickly to all countries, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said at a virtual summit.

Lee made the remarks on Saturday while speaking at the Global Goal: Unite for our Future Pledging Summit, held as an online event by advocacy group Global Citizen, reports The Straits Times.

In his speech, Lee emphasised the importance of "vaccine multilateralism" in the fight against the pandemic.

He said Singapore looked forward to working with the European Commission, like-minded countries, the World Health Organisation, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, "to develop vaccines and distribute them fairly and expeditiously to people in all countries".

"Until a vaccine is found, we are unlikely to see a return to our pre-COVID-19 way of life," Lee added.

Meanwhile in a Facebook post on Sunday, he said that Singapore has been doing its part in collecting and analysing data on the coronavirus to better understand the threat.

"But our efforts alone are not enough. A global pandemic requires a coordinated global response, especially in scientific research and government actions.

"The search for vaccines may take some time, but we will maximise our chances of tackling Covid-19 by working together," the Prime Minister added.

As of Sunday, Singapore has reported more than 43,000 CCOVID-19 cases and 26 deaths.