Moscow (AFP)
The mayor of Moscow, Sergei Sobyanin, announced on Sunday the establishment of a lottery to win a car to encourage citizens to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, in the face of the increase in new infections.
This announcement comes the day after Mr. Sobyanin's decision to declare a week off from June 12 to 20 to stem the spread of coronavirus in the Russian capital.
“From June 14 to July 11, citizens who will have their first injection of the Covid-19 vaccine will be able to participate in the lottery to win a car,” Sergei Sobyanin said in a statement published on his official website.
Each week, five cars worth around 1 million rubles (11,500 euros) each will be at stake, according to the same source.
"But of course, the main gain for those who get vaccinated cannot be compared to any car. It is their own health and spiritual balance," said the mayor of Moscow.
On Saturday, Mr. Sobianin has already ordered the closure of children's play areas in shopping malls and parks until June 20, called on employers to prioritize teleworking for their employees and banned restaurants from serving customers of 11:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.
Moscow city hall also announced this week the reopening of field hospitals to accommodate Covid patients.
Russia recorded 14,723 new cases of coronavirus on Sunday, including 7,704 cases in Moscow, by far the worst focus of the epidemic in the country.
In total, Russia has officially recorded 5,208,687 cases of coronavirus to date, including 126,430 deaths.
The country is one of the most affected by the pandemic, but the vaccination campaign launched in December is dragging on against a background of general mistrust of the population.
Since December, just 18 million Russians, or around 12% of the population, have received at least one dose of the Covid vaccine, according to official figures.
© 2021 AFP