Traditional games are played during Songkran in Siem Reap in 2019. FB
People can get vaccinated during the Khmer New Year festival between April 13 to 17 as capital and provincial administrations will set up vaccination sites in main recreation areas and pagoda compounds, said Ministry of Health spokesperson Or Vandine.
“These additional vaccination sites will make it easier for residents, garment workers to get vaccinated and boosted, apart from existing Covid-19 vaccination sites at government hospitals in the capital and provinces, and health centres,” said Vandine, who is also National Covid-19 vaccination committee head.
In a statement, she urged Covid-19 vaccination sub-committees to ensure that the information regarding the establishment of vaccination sites during the festival is disseminated.
“We would like to invite children, youths as well as garment workers to get vaccinated to increase immunity to stem the spread and reduce severe illnesses and deaths caused by Covid-19 in Cambodia,” she said.
Meanwhile, the statement issued by the National Covid-19 vaccination committee stated that recent studies showed that the immunity was decreasing after vaccinated people were jabbed four months or more.
Therefore, it is crucial that people receive their third and fourth doses in order to boost immunity.
Or Vandine reiterated that Covid-19 was not yet over as positive cases continue to be detected every day, albeit lower than before.
As of April 4, Cambodia vaccinated 92.71 per cent of the population. Nearly eight million people have received the third dose while 1.2 million people have got the fourth dose.
Separately, Cambodia has received nearly 50 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines through purchases, donations and bilateral agreements. Cambodia will continue to receive vaccines from other donor countries.
Prime Minister Hun Sen said in late March that if everything goes according to plan, million more doses of vaccine will arrive from donor countries like Italy, Poland and the US from April to September.
“We have enough vaccines to protect every one of our people – from their first dose to their third or fourth booster shots. The number of infections reported has dropped significantly, with some provinces reporting zero cases. However, we must not become lax – let’s all work together to keep these numbers low,” he said.
