A total of 405 second shots of booster doses have been administered against Covid-19, across the Maldives.

According to the latest figures publicized by the Health Protection Agency (HPA), 405 persons were administered the second booster dose of vaccine against Covid-19, by July 2. With this 0.09 percent of the population has received the second shot of booster dose.

Under the government’s "Covid-19 Dhifaau" inoculation drive, a total of 384,595 persons have completed both doses of the vaccine whereas 398,910 persons have received first doses nationwide so far. As such, while 88.10 percent of the population had received the first shot of vaccine against Covid-19, 84.94 percent of the population has received both the doses.

The number of persons who received the first booster shot currently sits at 159,638. This is 35.04 percent of the eligible population.

The incumbent administration launched the “Covid-19 Dhifaau” inoculation drive on 1 February 2021. Currently, there are nine vaccination centers in the capital region and 185 vaccination centers spanning outlying atolls.

HPA recently announced that the administration of booster doses has been opened for all individuals, without the need for a prior appointment.

Individuals will be required to bring their ID cards or an official document for identification purposes, wear loose clothing with easy access to shoulders, attend the vaccination center alone and have been well fed. They must also not be symptomatic or under quarantine.

For now, HPA is only administering Pfizer as booster doses.

The government earlier announced the decision to administer booster shots of the Covid-19 vaccination, to immunocompromised persons, seniors and frontline workers.

The decision to administer booster shots to frontliners and those at high-risk of complications from Covid-19 who have received both doses of Covid-19 vaccine, came following recommendations from the Maldives Technical Advisory Group on Immunization.

HPA revealed that the immunity provided by vaccination decreases over time and that a booster dose is required to boost immunity after six months, as it increased protection against infection and severe disease.

Authorities continue to urge the public to receive their vaccination shots, in order to help curb complications from the virus.