The Flemish government is sending out the very last vaccination invitations today, Flemish Minister-President Jan Jambon said during a visit to a vaccination centre in Affligem on Thursday.
Flanders' initial aim of giving a first dose to every adult by 11 July will be missed due to delivery issues, but with a 86% vaccination coverage for first shots, "Flanders belongs to the absolute world top," according to Jambon.
"Tonight, the last vaccination invitations go out for the over-16s," he said on Twitter, while thanking all volunteers in the centres. "Everyone, from age 16 to 107, will have been invited after today. That means that they will have had their first shot within 14 days."
De laatste vaccinatie-uitnodigingen gaan de deur uit. Met een vaccinatiegraad van 86% eerste prikken (18+) behoort Vlaanderen tot de absolute wereldtop! Een heel warme dank aan alle vrijwilligers in de vaccinatiecentra. Wat een ongelooflijke prestatie hebben zij geleverd! @wbeke pic.twitter.com/4kQxQxmVSY
— Jan Jambon (@JanJambon) July 8, 2021
Additionally, by the end of July, 80% of adults in Flanders will have received their second shot, according to Jambon. "With the increasing threat of variants, full vaccination is extremely important."
A total of 1.1 million vaccines will be administered this week and next week, of which more than 845,000 are scheduled second shots.
Additionally, Flemish Welfare Minister Wouter Beke highlighted that the Region already reached the threshold of 70% of the entire population who have received their first dose. "After Iceland, we are now the first in Europe to achieve this," he added.
