- A person who arrived to Vanuatu from Fiji on the 24th of November and another who arrived from Australia on 1st of December 2021 who were detected as active COVID-19 cases have now received medical clearance and have been discharged from isolation.
- Therefore, as of 22 December 2021, Efate and Offshore islands returned to Alert Level 0 (Low risk): no cases.
- So far, 326,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been received in Vanuatu, comprising 197,200 AstraZeneca doses, 100,000 Sinopharm doses and 28,800 Johnson & Johnson doses.
- Vaccine roll-out is ongoing in all six provinces. Vaccines are prioritised to health workers, front line workers (e.g. border workers, quarantine facility staff, public transport drivers), the elderly (55 and over), and people 35 and over with existing medical conditions.
- Up until 19 December 2021, there were 160,676 COVID-19 doses administered in Vanuatu. A total of 105,387 people received at least one dose of AstraZeneca or Sinopharm and 55,289 people have received two doses of either Sinopharm or AstraZeneca and are considered fully vaccinated.
- There have been 601 adverse events following COVID-19 immunization notified in Vanuatu. The vast majority have been mild to moderate side-effects reported via the dial-in line. 19 have been classified as serious adverse events and have required investigation. Of these, 18 required a causality assessment. 10 were confirmed to be coincidental, one was immunization anxiety-related and two were indeterminate (due to conflicting trends). Two serious AEFIs were confirmed to be related to a COVID-19 vaccine product administered in Vanuatu.
- Everyone is urged to refer to official information sources and avoid rumours. Updates will be communicated via the COVID-19 website: www.covid19.gov.vu
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