The Ministry of Health will kick off an educational campaign next week to raise awareness of health protection and vaccination against the coronavirus.

Or Vandine, ministry spokeswoman and head of the national Covid-19 vaccination committee, said the fight against the Omicron variant is not over yet and that while some members of the public seem to be concerned about the virus, some appeared to be becoming complacent.

She urged those who have not been vaccinated to get the jab as well as their booster shots.

“We will roll out another awareness raising campaign on March 22. The ministry and the sub-commission on education, training, and public communication – under the umbrella of the Inter-Ministerial Committee to Combat Covid-19 – will kick off the campaign across the country, starting with Kampong Speu province,” she said.

According to Vandine, the campaign will focus on health education, particularly the importance of vaccinations as Cambodia still considers vaccinations a top priority in the Covid-19 battle.

“We have to continue on the path towards herd immunity. If we do not maintain our vaccination levels now, people will get less benefit from them in the future. This public awareness campaign is designed to ensure the public understand that,” she added.

She said the campaign will also focus on vaccinations for children and the need to make sure that people’s Covid-19 shots were up to date.

The campaign would remind the public that everyone must learn to live with Covid-19, which meant not becoming complacent but maintaining vigilance at all times.

“We must be aware that we need to protect ourselves, under the new normal. Preventative measures should not be relaxed at all. This campaign will remind people of this need and educate them in ways that they can do so,” she said, calling for the public to adhere to the three dos and don’ts which formed the core of recommended preventative measures.

She noted that some people seemed to have stopped wearing masks, as they seemed to be of the view that this kind of protection was no longer needed. Such a belief, she said, was dangerous as the virus could still easily spread to them and their families.

As of March 13, more than 14.7 million people, or 92.19 per cent of Cambodia’s estimated population of 16 million, had been vaccinated. Of the total, more than seven million had received their third dose, while more than one million had received their fourth.

Vaccinations for the 3-4 age group, which began on February 23, had reached more than 260,000 children.