The number of coronavirus cases has been increasing recently, Barzani said during an award ceremony dedicated to the Region’s top students.
“Health minister [Saman Barzinji] told me that we have a large number of vaccines now but unfortunately people are not sufficiently willing to get vaccinated,” Barzani added.
Over 900,000 vaccines of all three types - Pfizer, Sinopharm, AstraZeneca - are available in the Region, according to the health ministry.
A third wave of the coronavirus hit the Kurdistan Region in July, reporting record-high numbers of daily infections. The surge contributed to an increased demand for vaccines, but the decline in the rate of infections and misleading information has discouraged people from getting vaccinated.
“A large number of people have not been vaccinated yet, and fewer people get vaccinated compared to before because some propaganda has discouraged people,” health minister Saman Barzinji told Rudaw on Tuesday, warning of a new wave.
“The fourth wave at this time is different and it is slower [in spreading] compared to two months ago,” he added, saying hospitalization has increased in the last two weeks which indicates the strength of the wave.
Over 3.2 million people are eligible for vaccination but only 13 percent have been vaccinated in the Kurdistan Region.
The KRG will do its utmost to provide sufficient vaccines for the people, the premier said.
The ministry’s vaccine rollout program has a registration platform open to the general public, but it prioritizes the elderly, people with chronic diseases, and health workers.
There are at least 171 vaccination centers in the Kurdistan Region.
The Region recorded 688 new cases of coronavirus, 1,367 recoveries, and 12 deaths on Wednesday, bringing the total number of cases up to 352,829 and total deaths to 6,188.
Additional reporting by Karwan Faidhi Dri
.jpeg&w=3840&q=75)
