Kyiv’s first mass COVID-19 vaccination center opened its doors on May 29.
The facility is based inside the International Exhibition Center on Kyiv’s left bank. It will be open on the weekends to people who registered for the vaccine waiting list through the Diia mobile app, according to Hromadske Radio. Up to 1,600 people can receive a shot in a single day.
However, out of the 8,000 people the center invited to its grand opening, only 560 showed up to receive a dose of the Chinese-made CoronaVac vaccine, Hromadske reported.
Although authorities have initially planned to vaccinate only people 65 and older, the center will provide jabs to anyone who shows up, provided they’re on the waiting list and have government ID.
Similar centers are set to open in Lviv and Odesa. Kyiv’s vaccination center, however, is the biggest one in Ukraine.
“Pilot vaccination centers are being opened to test the algorithm of mass vaccination in large premises. When Ukraine receives more vaccines, such centers will be established in other large cities,” Ukraine’s Health Ministry website reads.
Vaccination in Ukraine began on Feb. 24, and by May 28, 1 million people have received the first dose of the vaccine, while 123,964 people received both doses.
Ukraine started administering the CoronaVac vaccine, produced by China’s Sinovac Biotech, on April 13. The Chinese vaccine arrived in Ukraine on March 25 and went through laboratory testing and approval before being distributed throughout the regions.
The country has already received less than 2 million doses of vaccine, but more deliveries are scheduled in the coming months.
