YEREVAN -- Poland has donated a total of 201,640 doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca anti-COVID-19 vaccine worth nearly $660,000 to Armenia as the country struggles with a low inoculation rate that has seen only 20 percent of its 2.9 million people fully vaccinated.
Poland's embassy in Yerevan said on November 25 that the donation was made by the Polish Foreign Ministry to Armenia's Health Ministry.
Armenians have until now been inoculated with Russian and Chinese vaccines, as well as those from AstraZeneca and Moderna.
After spiking last month and the first half of this month, the number of daily coronavirus cases reported in Armenia has begun to slowly decrease over the past several days, but remains relatively high.
The Health Ministry on November 25 reported 592 new cases and 40 coronavirus-related deaths.
More than 7,400 people have died in Armenia from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic in March last year.
Health Minister Anahit Avanesian on November 25 also announced the start of a campaign to administer booster shots to those who were fully inoculated at least six months ago.
Vaccination in Armenia is not compulsory, but the government has introduced some administrative measures in an attempt to speed up the slow pace of its immunization campaign launched in April.
From October 1, virtually all public- and private-sector employees refusing vaccination have been obliged to take coronavirus tests twice a month at their own expense.
Earlier this month, the government revealed plans to make such mandatory testing weekly and introduce a mandatory health pass for entry to cultural and leisure venues.
