COVID vaccinations for children aged 12-15 years begin today
January 7, 2022 10:53 am
Sri Lanka is rolling out the COVID vaccinations for children aged between 12 - 15 years starting from today (January 07).
The inoculation program is being conducted by the health sector and the members of security forces.
Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said people who are yet to take their COVID booster dose can receive the third shot at the vaccination clinics operating for children.
According to official figures, the country has administered the first dose to over 15.99 million people so far. Meanwhile, more than 13.85 million of Sri Lanka’s population aged 16 years and above have also been fully vaccinated against the virus.
As per Epidemiology Unit’s data, the total number of people who received the booster dose of COVID vaccine in Sri Lanka now stands over 4.2 million.
As the country moves to completely vaccinate its entire population, inoculations targeting children aged 16 – 19 years of age, children aged 12 and above with co-morbidities and the 20 - 29-year age group were conducted simultaneously over the past few months.
Sri Lanka commenced vaccinating schoolchildren of the 16 - 19 age group on October 22, 2021. The students in this age group are administered only one dose of the Pfizer vaccine.