One week into the vaccination drive for children aged 6-11 in Bali, the province has managed to administer shots to an average of 25,000 kids per day — a rate that lags behind the provincial government’s goal.
The Bali Health Agency said, as of Dec. 21, 108,204 people in the youngest age group have received their first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine since the program launched on Dec. 15.
The provincial government initially targeted a vaccination rate of 40,000 children per day in order to complete the first round of jabs on 373,120 Balinese children before the end of the year.
“But the vaccination rate of 25,000 people per day is still high,” Bali Health Agency Head I Ketut Suarjaya said.
The province intends on speeding up the vaccination rate in order to meet its goal, but it may face a shortage of the Sinovac vaccine — the only vaccine approved for use on the age group — on the island.
Suarjaya said that 100,000 doses of the vaccine have been shipped to Bali and is expected to arrive today, noting that the central government has been quick to fill potential gaps in the island’s vaccine supply.
Among all age groups, Bali has one of the highest vaccination rates in Indonesia.
