Vaccination milestone
MANAMA: Bahrain is inching closer to a new milestone with almost a million people receiving at least one shot of a Covid-19 vaccine.
As of yesterday, as many as 992,747 citizens and residents have taken one shot – which accounts for 87 per cent of the eligible population.
The country is set to cross the incredible one million mark today as it paces towards its goal of achieving herd immunity.
A total of 811,912 people – or 71pc of the eligible population of an estimated 1.14m – have already taken two shots of a Covid-19 vaccine.
The eligible population, which now includes those aged above 12, has been assessed based on inputs from the Bahrain Embassy in the UK. On May 31, the mission had said in an update that 928,893 people, or 81pc, had taken the first dose of a vaccine.
The rapid pace of inoculation falls in line with Bahrain’s hopes to fully vaccinate 78pc of the population by July 1.
National Taskforce for Combating Covid-19 monitoring committee head Lieutenant Colonel Dr Manaf Al Qahtani had earlier said that by July 1, percentage of vaccinated people who completed two weeks after the second dose is expected to reach 78pc of the adult population.
By July 15, the percentage was expected to reach 87pc, he said.
As per journals a country achieves herd immunity when 80 to 90pc of its population is fully vaccinated.
Meanwhile, Health Ministry Bahraini family consultant Dr Hind Al Sindi expressed pride in the awareness of the community, which has led to a record number of residents taking the Covid-19 vaccine.
“I expect more people to register for the vaccine in the coming days,” she said.
“The daily rise in the number of vaccinated individuals assures us that we are heading towards our goal of achieving herd immunity to overcome this pandemic.
“There has been an amazing response from children aged between 12 and 17 and this shows that the Bahraini community, regardless of setbacks, is able to stand up and turn the tables to see the fall in numbers again within the coming weeks.
“However, we still need to commit to all precautionary measures mainly wearing face masks, maintaining social distancing and washing hands and most importantly, avoiding gatherings.”
Source: https://www.gdnonline.com/Details/946901/Vaccination-milestone
