Vaccination with Sinopharm has started in Georgia today, May 4. According to the existing information, the demand for vaccine has almost doubled. A total of 17,613 citizens have registered for Sinopharm jabs.

30 medical facilities were mobilized across the country to administer the vaccines, with another 44 expected to be added tomorrow.

The Head of the National Center for Disease Control and Public Health Amiran Gamkrelidze was among the first Georgians to publicly receive a Sinopharm shot.

Georgian health authorities initially stressed that inoculation with Sinopharm would not commence before WHO approval, but the country’s Immunization Council greenlighted to move ahead with the vaccination, as the China-made shots are still expecting WHO authorization.

Georgia opened registration with the Sinopharm vaccine for all citizens over the age of 18 on April 27, after having received a batch of 100,000 doses on April 3.