Over 68 pct of Turkey’s adult population receive two doses of virus jab

More than 68 percent of Turkey's population aged 18 and above have received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, while the rate for the first dose for the same age group is over 85 percent, data from the Health Ministry have shown.

Since it rolled out its inoculation drive in mid-January, the country has administered more than 106 million doses of the coronavirus jab. Nearly 43 million people have received both doses, while over 53 million people have been given their first dose of the vaccine. Additionally, some 10 million people have received the third of the coronavirus injection.

Only in seven provinces in Turkey's total of 81 provinces, at least 75 percent of the population are fully vaccinated.

Under the Health Ministry's classification, cities, where at least 75 percent of their residents have received two doses, are considered "low-risk" provinces.

In Istanbul, the country's most populous city, some 65 percent of the adult population have been fully vaccinated, whereas the corresponding rate for Ankara is above 71 percent. In İzmir, the third largest city, close to 74 percent of the residents aged 18 and above have been given both doses.

The northwestern province of Kırklareli has the highest rate at nearly 77 percent, followed by the southwestern province of Muğla at 76 percent. In the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa, which is at the bottom of the list, only a little over 41 percent of the adult population have been fully vaccinated.

"The higher the number of people who have received two doses and fully vaccinated increase, the higher our chances are in succeeding against the pandemic," said Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.

In the face of the stubbornly high coronavirus cases, Koca has been urging the...