Health minister Dr Christopher Tufton says the Ministry of Health and Wellness (MOHW) is expecting to administer vaccines to some 900,000 Jamaicans by September.

This is the target that has been set with the expectation that Jamaica will receive some 1.4 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine by that time.

Read: Tufton: Jamaica to receive 1.4 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine

He made the disclosure this afternoon during a virtual press conference from the Office of Prime Minister in St Andrew.

Data from the MOHW’s website indicate that only nine per cent of the population has been vaccinated so far.

“It’s an ambitious target but I believe with the support of the population and all of society we can achieve that target. If we set our minds to it and we make the effort and we get Jamaicans of all ages from 18 years and over — starting when the first shipment arrives we will open up to all who qualify— and we get that 900,000 applied plus who have already benefited then we will be somewhere in the region of 50 per cent of target.

“That will be a significant jump in the numbers and would certainly put us in the realm of other countries, many of whom are about 50 per cent of target. So in a sense, we’re going to be running a sprint over the next two months [and] it’s something that we’re not unaccustomed to,” said Tufton.