MANAMA: Bahrain has approved the use of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 12- to 17-year-olds, a crucial step in the country’s steady recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The National Taskforce for Combating Coronavirus last night announced that the kingdom has authorised the vaccine to be administered in two doses to this category.

Bahrain is the second country in the GCC to authorise a Covid-19 vaccine for youngsters, after the UAE.

The taskforce yesterday said the vaccination committee approved the jabs after studying all recommendations issued by an advisory group at the World Health Organisation and the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

It asserted that the jabs would protect children by providing immunity against the virus. “This age group, which ranges between 12 and 17 years, is vulnerable to Covid-19 infection and its complications,” the taskforce said in a statement.

“We have taken the decision to administer vaccination to prevent them from contracting the virus or suffering from its complications that could prove dangerous.”

Registrations for the vaccination will soon be open on the Health Ministry’s website.

“It will be administered after seeking the approval of the guardian, who should escort children to the health centre or hospital.”

Pfizer had earlier said that its vaccine was found to be 100 per cent effective in a clinical trial of more than 2,000 adolescents aged between 12 and 15.

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