Colombia to vaccinate children ages 3 to 11 with Coronavac

Starting this weekend, Colombia will vaccinate against Covid-19 children between 3 and 11 years old with Coronavac, Sinovac’s Chinese immunizer.

“From October 31 (…) we will open vaccination against Covid-19 to girls and boys aged 3 to 11, with “, announced on Twitter President Iván Duque.

“The objective is to vaccinate approximately 7.1 million children in this age group,” stated Health Minister Fernando Ruiz.

Although younger children are less likely to develop severe forms of Covid-19, they can still get sick and transmit the virus to the rest of the population.

Immunizing them will allow “their safe return to the classroom,” Ruiz noted. According to the government, 95% of elementary and high schools have already opened their doors in this country of 50 million inhabitants.

After overcoming its worst coronavirus peak between April and June this year, Colombia is experiencing an attenuation of the pandemic.

The eight million inhabitants of the capital Bogotá prepare for the return of mass events with no restrictions on seating capacity in mid-November.

To authorize the vaccination of children, the Ministry of Health “started from the free pass given by Invima”, the Colombian drug regulator, explained Ruiz. Sinovac “proved to be a safe vaccine”, he guaranteed.

China and Chile also authorized the use of the immunizing agent in minors.

In total, 21 million Colombians have been immunized against the coronavirus. Only 6% of the population says they have no intention of getting vaccinated, according to Dane (National Administrative Department of Statistics).

In proportion to its population, Colombia is the fourth country in Latin America with the most deaths from the virus, behind Peru, Brazil and Argentina.