Bangladesh begins administering COVID-19 vaccines to slum dwellers

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Bangladesh begins administering COVID-19 vaccines to slum dwellers

Source: Xinhua | 2021-11-17 | Editor:Lexi

Bangladesh has begun administering COVID-19 vaccines to slum dwellers in capital Dhaka.

Thousands of dwellers took their first shots of the COVID-19 vaccine at Dhaka's mega Korail slum on Tuesday morning.

Md Selim Reza, chief executive officer of Dhaka North City Corporation, told journalists that the campaign to vaccinate slum residents began at 25 booths, with the aim of inoculating 15,000 people on the first day.

After the vaccination at Korail slum, which houses around 300,000 people, he said the campaign will be expanded to inoculate other slum dwellers in the city.

Bangladesh launched the vaccine rollout in January. However, it had to suspend the operation in April after India halted export due to a supply crunch. The vaccination drive resumed in June with China-donated Sinopharm vaccines, after the drug regulator authorized emergency use of the Sinopharm vaccines.