Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government is confident to vaccinate 70 per cent of the target population by the end of 2021.
At a press conference, the policy makers of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) shared recommendations with the media which say that according to the global guidelines some 100 million people are required to be administered COVID-19 jabs to achieve the target of herd immunity in the country. Dr Naushin Hamid, the party’s parliamentary secretary for Health, explained that out of the 200 million population, more than half were young. Therefore, the government was targeting the remaining 100 million.
Young population
According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) report, Pakistan has one of the youngest populations in the world. Sixty-four per cent of the country’s population is under the age of 29, with some 30 per cent between the ages of 15 and 29.
Of the remaining 100 million, she said, vaccinating 70 million would help achieve the target to prevent and check the spread of COVID-19 in the country.
By the end of September this year, 30 million will be vaccinated as we shall be having ample stocks of vaccine in the coming days, said Dr Hamid.
Criteria for vaccination
The federal government has already made it clear that COVID-19 vaccine would be administered free of cost at public health facilities.
The criteria have been defined for frontline healthcare workers after consultation with provincial stakeholders, and a Resource Management System (RMS) has been set up so they could be registered through healthcare facilities.
33 deaths, 1,270 cases in one day
Pakistan on Friday reported 33 fatalities caused by COVID-19 and 1,270 confirmed cases of virus in 24 hours.
According to the official portal for COVID-19, the country’s total number of cases after fresh new infections has surged to 560,363 and death toll 12,218.
The country has also recorded 1,481 recoveries over the past 24 hours. The total number of recoveries in the country has now reached 518,164.
Islamabad’s DG Health, DHO receive jabs to boost morale of doctors
In the backdrop of slow response by the frontline health workers to receive vaccine doses, Director General of Health Dr Muhammad Safdar and the District Health Officer (DHO) Dr Zaeem Zia got vaccinated on Friday.
In Islamabad so far, less than 300 frontline health workers have been given vaccines. In a post on social media, Dr Zaeem Zia said he and DG Dr Safdar were administered COVID-19 jabs.
“We urge all our frontliners to follow your schedule and don’t believe in any myths! We are good and healthy and we want you to remain safe,” he tweeted.
There are around 7,000 frontline health workers — doctors and paramedics — and the government has given 8,000 jabs to be administered to them by Feb. 15 in the federal capital.
