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The United Arab Emirates vaccinated 8% of the population with the coronavirus vaccines and wants to cover half of the residents in the first quarter.
The Gulf Nation, which offers free vaccines to its residents, has administered more than 826,000 doses to date, said Farida Al Hosani, spokesman for the UAE’s health sector, according to the government’s official Twitter account.
The country, with a population of approximately 10 million expatriates, is trying to curb the recent rise in the number of cases by “reviewing procedures and focusing on vaccinating as many people as possible,” Al Hosani said. Vaccines are optional and not mandatory, she added.
The Golf Nation has the Pfizer Inc.-BioNTech SE Covid-19 vaccine, as well as that of Sinopharm unit China National Biotec Group.
Israel has led the fast sprint in the global coronavirus vaccination race, vaccinating about 15% of the population since December 20. The Middle East nation plans to vaccinate 70% to 80% of the population in April or May.
The UAE reported 1,967 daily coronavirus cases on Tuesday, the highest daily rate on record. The total number of cases stands at 216,699.