Denpasar, Bali (ANTARA) - Bali Province's COVID-19 Handling Task Force reported that a total of 2,997,059 residents, or equivalent to 87.43 percent of the island province's population, had received their second vaccine doses.

"To achieve herd immunity in Bali, we aim to vaccinate a total of 3,405,130 residents," the province's task force secretary, I Made Rentin, stated in Denpasar on Saturday.

The secretary drew attention to the varying levels of vaccination coverage in Bali's districts and city, with Denpasar City recording the highest coverage of 122.7 percent, while Buleleng District, with 69.2-percent coverage, was the lowest in the province.

Apart from Denpasar, only Badung District had surpassed the 100-percent cap, as the district had recorded a 114.8-percent coverage, he noted.

The rest of Bali's districts had passed the 70-percent mark vaccination coverage, as Tabanan had reached 87.1 percent; Klungkung, 82.6 percent; Gianyar, 79.3 percent; Karangasem, 73.8 percent; Bangli, 73.6 percent; and Jembrana, 71.5 percent, Rentin noted.

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"We need more time to achieve the 100-percent vaccine coverage in Bali, as administering the second vaccine jab must adhere to its timetable, for instance, those who receive the AstraZeneca vaccine must wait for eight weeks before they can receive the second jab," the task force secretary expounded.

He also noted that some residents, who received their first vaccine dose in Bali, had returned to their place of origin, thereby reducing the necessity to prepare more vaccine doses.

"Some of those who received their first jab in Bali had departed to their place of origin, and they will receive their second vaccine dose there," Rentin stated.

The province also recorded that the first COVID-19 vaccine had been administered to 3,428,121 residents, or equivalent to 100.68 percent of the intended target, he remarked.

Rentin informed that Bali had received a total of 7,054,149 vaccine doses comprising 3,155,158 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, 3,779,140 doses of Sinovac vaccine, 30,607 doses of Sinopharm vaccine, and 89,264 doses of Moderna vaccine.

"At present, we need to expedite vaccinations for the elderly," he remarked.

The Bali authority is aiming to inoculate 454,904 elderly under the vaccination drive, and from some 81.7 percent of the first vaccine dose coverage among elderly, those who completed the second vaccine dose had reached 68.5 percent, the secretary stated.
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Translator: Ni Luh Rhismawati, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Suharto
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