Malé, Maldives – 282 people were vaccinated against Covid-19 on the first day itself under the Dhifaau campaign, according to Health Emergency Operation Center (HEOC).
Maldives launched the Dhifaau campaign, a nation wide vaccination drive, yesterday starting off with frontline workers and social care workers, individuals in the high-risk or the elderly. Some of the top-government officials will also be receiving the Covid-19 vaccine, including the President of Maldives Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Speaker of the Parliament Mohamed Nasheed and Chief Justice Ahmed Muthasim Adnan.
Yesterday the vaccine administration was carried out in Hulhumale’ Hospital, Villimale’ Hospital, ADK Hospital and at Tree Top Hospital in the capital Male’ City. Along with this, vaccination is also being carried out in Addu Equatorial Hospital (AEH) in the southern region and Kulhdhuffushi Regional Hospital in the Nothern region of the Maldives.
Today, Maldives starts vaccination in all the hospitals in the country under the Dhifaau program. The program the aims to administer the Covid-19 vaccine to all the health and social workers in Maldives within a 10 days, and the entire population in 6 months.
Maldives has currently received 100,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca, Covishield, gifted from India. Additionally, Maldives is set to receive vaccines enough to vaccinate 20 percent of the population of the country, through the WHO endorsed Covax facility mid February. The government has signed an agreement to purchase an additional 700,000 doses, with the AstraZeneca pharmaceutical company set to arrive in March.
The incumbent government has announced that all citizens, along with the expat workers living in Maldives will receive the Covid-19 vaccine at no cost.
