Over 117.73M coronavirus vaccine shots given in Turkey to date

By Busra Nur Cakmak and Merve Berker

ANKARA (AA) – Turkey has administered over 117.73 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines since it launched an immunization drive in January, according to official figures released on Tuesday.

More than 55.69 million people have been given a first vaccine dose, while over 49.34 million are fully vaccinated, the Health Ministry said.

Turkey has also given third booster shots to over 11.46 million people.

Separately, the ministry recorded 28,662 new coronavirus cases, 196 related deaths, and 28,859 recoveries over the past day.

As many as 359,560 new virus tests were done in the last 24 hours.

Turkey also continues its efforts to finish testing its locally developed Turkovac vaccine, which the president has vowed to share worldwide once it is ready.

Since December 2019, the pandemic has claimed over 5.06 million lives in at least 192 countries and regions, with nearly 250.64 million cases reported worldwide, according to the US' Johns Hopkins University.