Leocadia Longino, an elderly resident of an indigenous mountain village in the central Mexican state of Hidalgo, gazed at a dam outside her home as she recounted how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected her business and aroused fear in her community.

The tree-lined banks and crystal clear water in the dam in Santa Ana Tzacuala, a poor village nestled in Sierra Otomi-Tepehua, used to attract many visitors who love to taste the trout cooked by her small family-run restaurant.

The dam has been empty since the pandemic broke out in Mexico last year, resulting in her family sales plummeting by half.

The dam "is our livelihood," the 67-year-old told Xinhua, adding that the lives of the villagers in the municipality of Acaxochitlan have been greatly affected by the pandemic.

However, her hope for the future was ignited again after being vaccinated against COVID-19. The vaccine, developed by Chinese pharmaceutical firm Sinovac, was distributed by the Mexican government to poor communities, especially for priority groups, such as the elderly, following the arrival of the first batch in late February.

The first day of vaccination in the village drew dozens of elderly people, some arriving at the site with canes.

"The vaccine is a new life, a new salvation," said Leocadia, expressing her gratitude for China to provide the vaccines to them.

The Mexican government sent dozes of vaccines to indigenous Nahuatl, Otomi and Tepehua communities in six municipalities in eastern Hidalgo, as part of its pandemic-fighting strategy to attend to poor high-risk groups first.

The Sinovac vaccine helps to save lives by facilitating vaccination in rural areas, since doses can be stored in normal refrigerators, said Abraham Mendoza, the federal government's delegate for development programs in Hidalgo.

Alejandro Lopez, head councilman of Acaxochitlan, described the Sinovac vaccine as a "light of hope" amid the health and economic ravages of COVID-19.

"We appreciate the support the Chinese people are giving us and we recognize the work they are doing, we recognize the nobility they have for humanity," Lopez said, adding that Chinese people not only have developed the vaccine, but also are sharing it.