Vaccination for children 5-11 years will be carried out in schools and institutions

According to the National Statistics Bureau, 83,227 children of 5 to 11 will be vaccinated, however, the data will be verified through Bhutan Vaccine System (BVS) registration as well as from the schools and institutions.

An official from the Ministry of Health (MoH) said the vaccination for children 5-11 years will be rolled out soon after the arrival of the vaccines in the country.  The registration for children in this age cohort was launched on 21 February 2022 for proper distribution of vaccines before the vaccination program. Further, the target population will be obtained from the respective schools and institutions for the children who are in the schools and institutions.

Considering the current outbreak and its spread, leading to categorization of districts/areas/zones into red, yellow and green zones, the respective districts will develop their microplans under different situations for the vaccination within their districts/areas, which are under red, yellow and green categories.

And also, depending on the situation, the vaccination will be carried out in the schools and institutions, as most of the eligible children will be in the schools and institutions, with support from the school teachers or health coordinators/DEOs/TEOs and monastic institutions.

The official said since children in this age cohort are identified as a vulnerable group, vaccinating them against COVID-19 would mean that the children will be protected against the disease, which will reduce the risk of serious illness and hospitalization.

By vaccinating entire children of 5-11 years, the projected estimation of the vaccination coverage will be 92.5 percent with the first dose and 89.3 percent with the second dose.

The health ministry has procured enough doses of 180,000 pediatric Pfizer vaccines to inoculate every child between the age of 5-11 years with the 1st and 2nd doses.

Meanwhile, the health ministry encourages everyone to register the child in the BVS- bvs.moh.gov.bt and on the spot registration services will also be facilitated at the time of vaccination.

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