UAE Administers Two Million Vaccines as Inoculation Gathers Pace

(Bloomberg) -- The United Arab Emirates has now administered more than two million coronavirus vaccine doses, inoculating nearly a fifth of its population as it tries to emerge from the pandemic that has ravaged the key tourism industry.

The Gulf nation is home to about 10 million people, mostly foreigners, and has the second-highest per-capita inoculation rate in the world after Israel. The government’s website showed the country administered 93,846 doses on Tuesday, taking the total to 2.07 million.

The oil-rich country has approved a vaccine developed by China’s Sinopharm, as well as Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE’s shot, and has since rolled out an aggressive vaccination campaign.

Key officials, including Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah Bin Zayed, have said they’ve been vaccinated.

While Sinopharm’s vaccines are offered across the country, the Pfizer shot for now is available only for Dubai-based residents who fit certain criteria.

The two million milestone comes as the country reported a record 3,491 cases on Tuesday. Infections have almost tripled since November as a majority of Covid-related restrictions were lifted, though masks remain mandatory.

The UAE’s extensive vaccination campaign is especially key to the business hub of Dubai, whose economy relies on travel and tourism. The emirate is home to more than 3 million people and aims to vaccinate 70% of its residents by the year-end, Reuters reported in December.

Meanwhile, the UAE aims to cover 50% of its overall population by April.

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