Canada is negotiating with the Serum Institute of India to obtain additional doses of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine, Procurement Minister Anita Anand said.

"We… are engaged with the Serum Institute of India for doses in addition to the 20 million that we have under contract with AstraZeneca," Anand told reporters on Tuesday.

The procurement minister also confirmed that Canada’s initial order of 20 million AstraZeneca vaccine doses will be supplied from the United States.

Despite inking deals with numerous vaccine manufacturers, the Trudeau government has faced sharp criticism for a muted vaccine rollout program that has been labeled a failure by opposition parties and the majority of Canadians, according to the latest polls.

(IBNS/Sputnik)