Malta became the first country in the European Union to obtain the long-awaited group immunity against COVID-19. The country has already immunized 70% of its adult population with at least one dose, Health Minister Chris Fearne announced yesterday. "I obtained immunity from the staff. The vaccine is the best weapon against the virus, "said Fearne, adding that 42% of the adult population has already received the full vaccine. Thus, Malta will reopen international tourism from 1 June.
"Vaccines are administered at speed, one every five seconds," the health minister explained. The Mediterranean island had on average three new cases every day in the last week, with the test positivity rate maintained at a low level of 0,2%. Fearne also announced that the mandatory use of outdoor masks for vaccinated people will be lifted on July 1. The only condition for this measure to be maintained is that the virus cases remain low.
Malta became the first country in the European Union to obtain group immunity.
The Minister of Health announced that vaccination is open to residents over the age of 16. 12-year-olds will also be vaccinated once the European medical authorities give the green light. "Malta has started the path to normalcy", he said. According to official figures released Monday by health authorities, a total of 474.475 doses of the vaccine have been administered so far, of which 302.933 were the first doses.
Curiously, the country remains among the destinations that the United Kingdom has included on the yellow list of the "traffic light" system it uses, despite the fact that it has much better epidemiological data than the United Kingdom and has surpassed them in the process of immunizing population.
In view of these good data, Prime Minister Boris Johnson and members of a Conservative support committee, the so-called 1922 committee, said that Malta could be included in the green list at the next review of the "traffic light" for international travel, which will take place on June 7, along with Grenada, the Cayman Islands, Fiji, the British Virgin Islands, Finland and several Caribbean islands.
To encourage tourists to choose Malta, local authorities have developed a system of financial incentives for accommodation. Tourists who choose to travel independently in Malta may receive money for accommodation. Through this system, the Malta Tourism Authority will encourage independent travelers wishing to visit the Maltese Islands for a minimum of 3 nights. Tourists must book that holiday directly at one of the 3 *, 4 * and 5 * hotels.