UAE: 41,346 Covid vaccine doses administered in 24 hours

The UAE has administered 41,346 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine in the past 24 hours.

The country's Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) said the total doses administered now stand at 22.4 million.

This takes the rate of doses to 227.22 doses per 100 people.

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UAE doctors say there has been a significant increase in the demand for Covid-19 booster vaccines as cases rise.

The UAE's daily cases crossed the 1,000-mark on Thursday for the first time in four months. Though cases have surged recently, hospitalisation rates in the country remain low, government spokesperson Dr Noura Al Ghaithi had said earlier this week.

Still, doctors urged residents to get their booster shots as soon as possible for better protection against the virus.

Meanwhile, South Africa will start offering booster shots of Johnson & Johnson’s (J&J) Covid-19 vaccine from Friday, the health department said in a statement, following its approval for use as a booster by the health regulator a day earlier.

Both J&J and Pfizer Covid-19 shots have been authorised as boosters by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA), but the move opens up boosters to the general public for the first time.

So far, only J&J booster shots have been available for health workers. However the emergence of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 has heightened the need for people to shore up their protections.

• Dubai