YAOUNDE, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- Cameroon will inoculate all personnel on state payroll against COVID-19 next month as part of its nationwide vaccination program, a government minister has said.

The civil servants will be vaccinated from Nov. 6 to 30, Minister of Public Service and Administrative Reform Joseph Le said Thursday.

"The preservation of the health of personnel at the service of the state is both a major concern and a duty of public authorities," he said. "We must ensure that the work environment is not a place where the virus spreads, but a framework for professional development and health promotion for all."

Le said vaccination will not be compulsory but urged all civil servants to get vaccinated to protect themselves and their loved ones.

On Wednesday, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Cameroon, quoting government statistics, said the central African nation reported 4,024 positive cases from Sept. 21 to 28, the highest weekly count since March, and raised an alert on the presence of the Delta variant.

Cameroon wants to vaccinate 60 percent of the target population by January 2023, but as of Sept. 22, only 0.9 percent had been vaccinated, according to figures from the Expanded Program on Immunization. Enditem

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