With 2,764 more first doses of the Covid-19 vaccination administered on Wednesday, the number of persons in waiting for second doses has risen to 62,091.

Second doses are administered after a required waiting period.

Latest figures published by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) reveal that 3,317 vaccination doses were administered on Wednesday, of which 2,764 were first doses and 553, second.

The first doses included 1,629 Greater Malé residents and 1,135 atoll residents, whereas 374 Greater Malé residents and 179 atoll residents received second doses by the day’s end.

This means that 2,003 Greater Malé residents received vaccinations from three mobile teams across six vaccination centers in the capital region and 1,314 atoll residents were given vaccine doses across 176 centers spanning outlying atolls on Wednesday.

The total number of persons who have completed both vaccine doses currently sits at 297,556 whereas the number of persons who have received a first dose has been pushed to 359,647.

More residents across the Maldives have begun attending vaccination centers for their first jabs as authorities have set a deadline for the administration of first doses of AstraZeneca vaccine Maldives has received and is currently administering, on September 1, as the supply will expire in November.

It was revealed that the government aims to vaccinate 95 percent of those above 18 years of age as well as school employees through the vaccination coverage, by the beginning of September.

HPA is currently in the final stages of the vaccination drive, launched by the incumbent administration of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on February 1.

HPA has also publicized a list of restrictions that unvaccinated persons will be facing, including a ban on domestic travel and disallowing tourists to check in to guesthouses if they are unvaccinated. Further, civil servants who have not been vaccinated yet will also be required to present negative PCR test results every 14 days from September 1.