The Planters’ Association of Ceylon (PA) and the Plantation Human Development Trust (PHDT) announced major progress in their collective efforts to safeguard all residents of Sri Lanka’s estate community, with over 85% of the community across 7 regions having received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and 63% being fully as at September 10.
Working in close partnership with the Ministry of Health (MoH), Provincial Health Authorities and PHDT, Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs) have been able to fast track the rate of vaccinations for its estate workers and their families.
“With the number of COVID cases on the rise once again, ensuring the safety of our estate workers and their families is a priority for all RPCs. Vaccinations are being carried out systematically. Our mission is to ensure that all our workers and the community at large, are fully vaccinated by the end of September 2021.” PA media spokesperson Dr Roshan Rajadurai said.
“We are grateful to the authorities for their vital assistance in this endeavour and we remain committed to ensuring the safety of all our employees.”
As of September 10, over 87% of those between the ages of 30-59 received their first doses, while over 58% received their second doses thus far. Priority has also been given to those above 60 years, with over 92% having received their first jab and over 79% have received their second jab in the estate sector.
The PA noted that the inoculation drive commenced from the Nuwara-Eliya district (Covering Hatton & Nuwara Eliya) since the largest community of estate workers reside in this area. Over 85% of 30-60-year-olds have already received their first dose while over 54% received their second dose. Meanwhile, over 89% of individuals from the other plantation districts belonging to the same age category received their 1st dose while 62% received their second dose.
“The vaccination distribution is held under three phases with priority being given to frontline workers, secondly the factory workers inclusive of community leaders & thirdly, the staff and the wider community. We are pleased to note that we have reached the final half of the third phase.
“Before the vaccines being distributed, estate managers worked closely with MoH officials and PHIs to raise awareness about the vaccine, and alleviate all doubts. This drastically reduced any hesitancy which the community had towards vaccines, which in turn was instrumental to the successful rollout,” PHDT Director-General Lal Perera said.
“While we continue to keep up the momentum of the vaccine drive, COVID 19 awareness programmes and basic healthcare/welfare services continue to operate unhindered. Proactive measures like regional help desks have been set up for the estate community throughout the pandemic.”
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