Day: November 3, 2021

On the national antiCovid-19 vaccination program, Balbisi said that the number of first dose recipients reached about 4 million, while the number of two doses recipients reached 3.6 million.

The vaccination rate for the target group, he added, reached 60 per cent for the first dose, and 55 per cent for both doses, while the number of target groups over the age of 18 is 6.4 million people.

Balbisi urged people to receive the vaccine, stressing that reaching safety requires giving 75 per cent of the target group two doses of the vaccine, and that Jordan has 3.5 million doses of vaccine that are sufficient for until the end of this year.

On the third booster dose, Balbisi revealed that the ministry and the Epidemiology Committee debate to expand giving third dose to all age groups provided that they had received both doses 6 months prior, in order to enhance community immunity.

He said that those who received the vaccine, aged 12 to 17, reached 180,000, out of 1.3 million people, stressing that there is no obligation to vaccinate this group. He called on their families to approve of receiving vaccinations, pointing out that schools will require parents’ approval to give vaccinations to students, and to contact the ministry to reach the school and give the vaccine.

Balbisi called on citizens to adhere to preventive measures and distancing, following citizens’ negligence of these measures, calling on everyone not to pursue rumors and get news and information from its official sources, especially since the ministry will not hide any information about the developments of the epidemiological situation.

Concluding the interview, Balbisi disclosed that the ministry and the Princess Haya Center for Biotechnology at the Jordan University of Science and Technology and the Royal Medical Services are conducting genetic sequencing tests, to detect new genetic strains, stressing that no new strains have been recorded, as delta is still spreading in Jordan.

SOURCE: JORDAN NEWS AGENCY

the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) commemorates a major milestone, marking 60 years since it was founded by President John F. Kennedy.

For six decades, USAID has built its reputation as the world’s leader in international development by partnering with countries around the world to strengthen communities and improve lives, the mission said in a statement.

The U.S. government has supported Jordan’s development for 75 years, providing Jordan with more than $17.3 billion in foreign aid since 1946. Today, the U.S. economic assistance program to Jordan is the largest in the world.

USAID works closely with Jordan’s government and people to support Jordan’s economic stability and security through programs that generate private sector-led growth, strengthen water security, advance accountable democratic governance, enhance the participation of women and youth in the economy and public life, and invest in education and health to leverage the potential of Jordan’s most important asset, its people.

USAID has directly supported a 40 percent reduction in infant mortality in the last twenty years, expanded equitable access to education for Jordanian and refugee students, and increased the availability of drinking water and improved sanitation for millions of Jordanians.

USAID has helped many Jordanian small and medium-sized businesses take advantage of trade opportunities under the Jordan-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, which has increased trade between Jordan and the United States from $568 million in 2001 to more than $3 billion in 2019.

In July, the U.S government donated 500,000 doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to Jordan reflecting the strength of the U.S.-Jordanian partnership.

USAID has partnered with the Government of Jordan to fight COVID-19 by training more than 16,500 health care providers to identify and treat COVID-19 patients, increasing PCR testing capacity from 5,000 to 65,000 tests per day, and launching communications campaigns that reached over 7 million people throughout the country to promote behaviors that limit the spread of the virus and increase demand for vaccines.

To support Jordan’s economic recovery, USAID contributed $40 million to the Istidama wage subsidy program to keep people employed during the pandemic and established a multi-donor fund that has raised over $100 million to bolster the National Aid Fund’s emergency cash assistance for Jordan’s most vulnerable populations.

SOURCE: JORDAN NEWS AGENCY