France donates 1.6M AstraZeneca doses, Philippines extends vax drive

France donated 1.6 million AstraZeneca doses of COVID-19 vaccines to the Philippines on Wednesday.

The additional supply arrived at Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3, bringing the total number of doses received from South Korea and France to over 2 million in two days.

As part of the three-day national vaccination drive, more than 5 million doses have been administered across the country as of Wednesday.

Health Undersecretary Myrna Cabotaje reported that daily vaccination rates in areas with low inoculation rates increased by three to four times during this campaign compared to usual daily accomplishments.

Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. recommended extending the national vaccination drive until Friday due to high demand and successful initial days of the program.