Hong Kong expands COVID-19 vaccination campaign

ANKARA

Hong Kong on Thursday announced its COVID-19 vaccination campaign to residents aged between 16 and 30.

The bookings for the vaccination will commence on April 23, officials said, according to the public broadcaster RTHK.

Patrick Nip, the Hong Kong secretary for the civil service, said 16- and 17-year-olds, nearly more than 1.08 million residents, will get the German-made BioNTech vaccine, while the Sinovac jab will only be available for people aged 18 and above.

Hong Kong has stopped the use of the BioNTech vaccine, except for the age group of 16-17, for those who will need parental consent to receive the jab.

Last week, it asked the AstraZeneca vaccine manufacturer to delay its vaccine shipment.

Nip, who is heading the government’s inoculation drive, said the vaccination centers offering BioNTech jabs will cease operating at the end of September.

He added that BioNTech doses bought by the local government will expire after four months.

Expanding the vaccination program means it will cover 88% of Hong Kong’s over 7 million population.

Hong Kong has reported 11,613 coronavirus cases, including 209 deaths, since the first cases were reported in China’s Wuhan city in December 2019.