Cambodia continues closing preschools, Laos to offer booster shots

In Phnom Penh, Cambodia (Photo: AFP)

Phnom Penh (VNA) – The Cambodian Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport on November 8 requested all preschools nationwide remained close until further notice, because children aged below 5 have yet to be vaccinated.

This means 289,136 children under five years old will continue to stay home.

Since November 1, Cambodia has given COVID-19 vaccine shots to 194,228 children aged five, or 63.82 percent of the total in this age group.

As of November 8, 13.9 million out of the country's population of around 16 million had been given at least one shot of vaccine, with 9.6 million of them fully vaccinated. Meanwhile, nearly 2 million others, including medical and security staff, and residents in Phnom Penh have received booster shots.

In Laos, the Health Ministry also announced that it will offer booster shots to medical workers to ensure their safety in the fight against the pandemic, starting from January-February, 2022.

On November 9, the ministry reported three deaths and 1,049 new cases in the past 24 hours, including 1,045 in the community. So far, the country has logged 48,891 infections, including 89 fatalities caused by the disease./.