DUHOK, Kurdistan Region — Forty-five percent of the people in the Kurdistan Region vaccinated for COVID-19 so far are in Duhok, according to the province’s health directorate.

So far, Duhok has received 11,500 doses of AstraZeneca and 920 of Sinopharm. of which more than 6,000 have been used.

“I registered through Iraq’s health ministry website to get vaccinated. Two days later, I received a text message on my phone. It listed the date and location of the vaccination. I got vaccinated today. I think it’s a good vaccine for the coronavirus,” Hussein Arif, a civil servant, told Rudaw.

Due to the limited number of doses, people under the age of 18 are currently not being vaccinated.

Although Duhok has used more doses compared to other provinces, authorities say people are having problems registering for the vaccine.

“Sometimes, false information is provided while registering. There are people who are under 18 who register themselves as older. Some have a fever, I don’t vaccinate them. Some women are pregnant and some are breastfeeding,” Dr Arshad Mustafa, director of Nizarke health centre. “Therefore, we must double-check the information when they come here.”

There are 40 vaccination centres in Duhok. So far, no serious side effects have been reported as a result of the vaccinations.

Duhok province is the hardest hit of the second wave of COVID-19, accounting for almost half of new cases.

The Kurdistan Region received 43,000 doses of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccines on March 27. It started its COVID-19 vaccination last month.

Translation and video editing by Sarkawt Mohammed

Rudaw