KUALA LUMPUR (REUTERS) - Malaysia said on Wednesday (Nov 18) that it has signed an agreement with China to cooperate on the development of a safe and efficacious vaccine, as part of efforts to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.

Under the agreement, in force for an initial period of five years, the South-east Asian nation will be given priority access to Covid-19 vaccines developed by China.

Both will share knowledge and expertise and facilitate scientific and technological capabilities to advance vaccine development in their countries, Malaysia said in a joint ministerial statement.

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin signed the agreement with his Chinese counterpart Wang Zhigang in a virtual ceremony.

Cooperation between Malaysia and China under the agreement would be supervised by a committee chaired by the foreign affairs ministers of both countries that was formed in October to address post-pandemic challenges.

"Both countries will also support the participation of their public and private sectors including universities, institutions, societies and organisations in joint collaborative projects," Mr Khairy said.