Minister calls on citizens to get jabbed

Turkey's health minister has urged citizens to get their shots against COVID-19 to keep the pandemic under control, as the vaccination rate has not yet reached 75 percent in some provinces.

"We must reach the target of 75 percent in all provinces with low vaccination rates. Those who are late, let's roll up our sleeves," Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter, noting that the second dose vaccination rate in the northeastern province of Bayburt has just increased over 65 percent.

The minister also added that Bayburt entered the blue category on Turkey's COVID-19 vaccination map.

The color-coded vaccination map assigns colors to provinces based on vaccination rates, with red indicating the highest risk and yellow meaning the medium-level risk in terms of infections.

Earlier, Koca reminded once again that the vaccination rate should increase throughout the country, stressing that the determination on the field continues.

"We should never forget that overcoming the pandemic conditions is not only dependent on the vaccine. It is necessary to take precautions against the increasing circulation rate of the virus," Koca added.

Turkey has administered over 117.8 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines since it launched an immunization drive in January, according to official figures released.

More than 55.7 million people have been given a first vaccine dose, while over 49.35 million are fully vaccinated, the Health Ministry said.

Turkey has also given third booster shots to over 11.43 million people.