Health Canada has approved the first COVID-19 vaccine for children aged five to 11 in Canada.

Pfizer and its partner BioNTech submitted a request for approval of a child-sized dose of its mRNA vaccine for COVID-19 on October 18.

The companies say the results of their trials in children show comparable safety and efficacy results to those recorded in a previous Pfizer-BioNTech study in adults aged 16 to 25.

Health Canada said it would only approve the vaccine for children if its analysis showed the benefits outweigh the potential risks.

Pfizer-BioNTech has changed the formulation of the pediatric vaccine slightly, so new vaccines must be delivered to Canada before children can receive a shot.

Canada is expecting an accelerated delivery of 2.9 million child-sized doses, enough for a first dose for every child in the five to 11 age group.

On Wednesday, Manitoba's Health Minister announced that the first doses of the Pfizer vaccine for children are expected to be available in our province as early as one week after the vaccine is approved. The vaccine will be offered through provincial and regional vaccine clinics, physicians' offices, pharmacies, urban Indigenous clinics and pop-up community clinics. Walk-ins will be an option at some locations and in-school vaccinations will be offered in the coming weeks, both during and after school hours.

There are approximately 125,000 children aged five to 11 living in Manitoba.

With files from Canadian Press