Caracas, Aug 31 (IANS): Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro has announced he will be asking for volunteers to test the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Russia, it was reported on Monday.

"In the coming days, we'll be asking for volunteers to get vaccinated," the BBC quoted as saying on Sunday.

He also that a nationwide lockdown would resume on Monday to curb the spread of the virus.

The Venezuelan government, which has received billions of dollars in loans from Russia to prop up its troubled economy, said it would be willing to take part in clinical trials.

Russia was the first country to officially register a vaccine against the coronavirus on August 11, but immunologists have raised concerns about the speed with which it has been developed and whether it has undergone the necessary testing.

Venezuela has so far reported 45,868 coronavirus cases and 381 deaths, a much lower toll than other countries in South America.

But health experts have said that the true figure could be much higher as many Venezuelans don't get tested for fear of being stigmatised after the government blamed returning migrants for the spread of Covid-19.