Hong Kong has approved lowering the age limit for the Covid-19 vaccine from China's Sinovac Biotech to three years old, down from 18 years of age, as it pursues a broader campaign to incentivise its 7.5 million residents to get vaccinated, reports Reuters.

"Adolescents aged 12 to 17 will be accorded priority to receive the CoronaVac vaccine, with a view to extending to children of a younger age group at a later stage," Hong Kong's Secretary for Food and Health (SFH) Sophia Chan said in a statement.

According to the statement, the SFH considered that the benefits of approving the extension of the age eligibility to cover those aged three to 17 "outweigh the risks".