BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Sept. 1 (Xinhua) -- Half of the Brunei population has received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccines under the national vaccination program, the Brunei government announced on Wednesday.

According to the Ministry of Health, as of Aug. 31, 231,613 individuals have been administered with at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccines, accounting for 51.1 percent of the Sultanate's total population, and 96,212 people have received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, accounting for 21.2 percent of the total population.

The Brunei government officially launched the third phase of its national vaccination program on July 5, providing free COVID-19 vaccination for all citizens and residents over 18 years old in the country, aiming to achieve at least 70 percent vaccination coverage by the end of this year.

The first phase mainly targeted medical personnel, border control personnel fighting against the epidemic in the front line, and senior citizens and students pursuing studies abroad, while the second phase is for teachers, childcare staff and adults with chronic diseases.

Brunei previously announced that five COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca, China's Sinopharm, and Johnson and Johnson would be administered in the country. All Brunei citizens and residents, including foreign nationals with a valid identification card, can receive the COVID-19 vaccination for free.

However, facing a new wave of the pandemic starting from Aug. 7 with thousands of locally transmitted cases detected in less than a month, Brunei has encountered an explosive growth in demand for vaccines and a shortage of stockpiles.

The health ministry announced that starting from Wednesday until a date to be announced later, "all vaccinations centers nationwide will not be able to provide the COVID-19 vaccination services to anyone who has booked for the first dose."

The health ministry said the postponement "is due to the supply of COVID-19 vaccine that has been reduced rapidly and unexpectedly," adding it is working to get vaccine supplies as soon as possible.

Brunei reported 146 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, bringing the national tally to 2,858.

The health ministry said all the new cases are local infections. While the source of infection of 58 local cases is still under investigation, two new clusters have been detected, which brings the total number of active clusters to 48.

There are currently 1,791 active cases being treated and monitored at the National Isolation Center, with six of them in critical condition and 24 other patients under close monitoring.

Brunei also reported 87 recoveries and two deaths on Wednesday. There have been a total of 1,053 recovered patients and 14 deaths reported so far in the country. Enditem

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