All islanders to be vaccinated by end of June

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has announced a plan which aims to vaccinate all the residents of the Greek islands by the end of June “at the latest.”

“The goal is the universal and complete vaccination of the permanent residents of the islands by the end of June at the latest,” he told a teleconference for the Blue Freedom operation, as the plan has been dubbed.

The plan calls for all permanent residents over the age of 18 to be vaccinated on a total of 19 islands, with a total population of 700,000. 

The ambitious project is not starting from scratch as vaccinations have already been completed on 32 islands, with those on another 36 to be completed by the end of May. 

The shots to be given to the islanders will be the Johnson & Johnson vaccination, which only requires one dose, in order to expedite the project.

To this end, new vaccination centers are being set up which will be supplemented by mobile vaccination teams.

The operation will be supported by NGO volunteers and mobile medical units that have been donated by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.

The plan also foresees the deployment of private vaccination centers.

“The first large-scale receipt of Johnson & Johnson’s one-dose vaccines at the end of the month will contribute to building the first massive wall of immunity,” Mitsotakis told the four governors and mayors of the 19 islands who took part in the teleconference.

He added that Greece’s armed forces will also assist in the effort.

“This initiative has a complex dimension, health, social, economic, but also geostrategic, in some aspects.

It is therefore a national affair and that is why it must succeed… in order to do that we will need your help and support,” he added.