Bangladesh ready to kick off massive vaccination drive Saturday

Bangladesh is set to gear up the ongoing Covid-19 vaccination drive across the country on Saturday.

Dhaka, Aug 6 :  With a fresh stock of vaccine doses on hand, Bangladesh is set to gear up the ongoing Covid-19 vaccination drive to take it to the next level as it aims to inoculate 80% of its population with each person getting two doses administered.

Addressing a press briefing at BCPS auditorium on Friday, Director General of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Dr ABM Khurshid Alam said they are ready to accelerate the drive across the country on Saturday.

He said those above 25 years of age will be vaccinated, giving priority to senior people and women and physically-challenged ones.

Initially, he said, 35 lakh people will be vaccinated and those living in inaccessible remote areas will also be brought under the drive. 

With 32,706 vaccinators and 48,459 volunteers ready, the government has planned to administer jabs simultaneously in 4,600 unions, 1,054 municipality areas, and in 433 wards of the city corporations, said Khurshid Alam.

Campaign timeline and areas:

On August 7, the vaccination campaign will kick off in all union, municipality and city corporation areas.

During August 8-9, vaccine jabs will be administered in the excluded wards of unions and municipal areas where already the campaign was underway.

During August 10-12, Covid jabs will be administered among Rohingya citizens over 55 years old.

Since the inauguration of mass inoculation in Bangladesh on February 7, this year, some 4,416,131 people have fully been vaccinated with two shots while 10,009,953 people have received the first doses, says the DG of the DGHS, reports UNB.