Japan tops 50 percent vaccination rate

Government officials in Japan said on Sunday that 50 percent of the nation’s population have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, The Associated Press reported. 

Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said on a Japanese media talk show that Japan should reach a 60 percent vaccination rate by the end of September. 

The government is also expected to ease COVID-19 restrictions in November as a large percentage of the population will be vaccinated, the AP noted, adding that citizens who test negative will be allowed to travel, attend social gatherings, and mass events. 

Japan, which started its vaccine program in mid-February, has seen up to 1 million vaccine doses administered since late May, the news service reported. 

But it added that the younger population in the country still remains largely unvaccinated as the highly contagious delta variant is causing the new spike of cases. 

The developments come as Tokyo and 18 other areas in Japan are under a state of emergency that is scheduled to end on Sept. 30. 

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Japan has reported over 1.65 million coronavirus cases and 16,700 deaths, the AP noted.