Covid: the EU has enough doses to vaccinate 70% of its adult population - France 24

Brussels (AFP)

The European Union has reached its goal of having enough doses to vaccinate 70% of its adult population, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced on Saturday.

The responsibility for administering the doses lies with the governments of the 27 member states, and some are moving faster than others, but according to Mrs von der Leyen "the EU has kept its promise".

The EU's Joint Vaccine Purchase Program, managed by the European Commission, provided 330 million doses of the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine, 100 million of AstraZeneca, 50 million of Moderna and 20 million of Johnson & Johnson.

All except Johnson & Johnson require two doses to be injected to achieve maximum effectiveness.

The EU has some 366 million adults.

"This weekend, we delivered enough vaccine to Member States to fully immunize at least 70% of the adult population this month. By tomorrow, some 500 million doses will have been distributed to all parts of Europe." , said von der Leyen.

"The Covid 19 is not yet defeated. But we are ready to continue providing vaccines - also against new variants. Now Member States must do all they can to ensure that vaccination progresses. while we will all be safe ".

© 2021 AFP