Singapore will start vaccinating schoolchildren against the coronavirus soon, AFP quoted the prime minister as saying on Monday, after officials warned that new strains were affecting youngsters more.

The city-state recently tightened curbs following a slight uptick in cases, after months of reporting barely any local transmissions.

This included closing schools amid signs that new variants, such as the one first detected in India, were affecting children in greater numbers.

In a televised speech, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced school students aged 12 and over will be the next group to be inoculated.

Health regulators approved the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds this month. It was previously only allowed for those aged 16 and above.