Adolescent Vaccination Rate Surpasses 50%... Sharp Decline in Student COVID-19 Cases

50.8% Youth Vaccination Rate as of 0:00 on the 3rd
478 Student Cases Confirmed in the Last 4 Days
Cases Reduced to Half Compared to 4 Weeks Ago

As the government decided to strengthen social distancing measures again, students are attending school in front of a middle school in Seoul on the 17th, the day it was announced that all schools in the metropolitan area and large schools and overcrowded classes in non-metropolitan areas will stop full attendance starting from the 20th. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The COVID-19 vaccination completion rate for children and adolescents aged 12 to 17 has surpassed 50%.

On the 3rd, the Ministry of Education held a regular briefing and announced that as of midnight on the 1st, the vaccination completion rate exceeded 50%, recording 50.7%.

As of midnight on the 3rd, the second dose completion rate for ages 12 to 17 is 50.8%, and the first dose completion rate is 75.1%.

The second dose completion rate for ages 16 to 17 is 72.5%, with a first dose completion rate of 87.3%. For ages 12 to 15, the second dose completion rate is 40.2%, and the first dose completion rate is 69.1%.

According to the Ministry of Education, the average daily number of confirmed student cases over the past week (December 27 to January 2) was 587.4. For faculty and staff, the daily average was 39.8.

Over the recent four days (December 30 to January 2), the average daily number of confirmed student cases was 478.3, a decrease of 292.6 cases compared to the previous week (770.9 cases).

Within four weeks, the average daily number of confirmed student cases has dropped to about half. The student case counts were ▲ December 9?15: 963.9 ▲ December 16?22: 958.9 ▲ December 23?29: 770.9 ▲ December 30?January 2: 487.3.

A Ministry of Education official explained, "Social distancing measures were strengthened from December 18, and density adjustments were implemented from the 20th. With the start of the vacation and increased vaccination rates among middle and high school students, a synergistic effect appears to have occurred."

The Ministry of Education plans to promote "normal attendance" from the new semester. Instead of the previous term "full attendance," the phrase "normal attendance" is used to signify the restoration of daily school life.

A Ministry of Education official stated, "We plan to promote the recovery of daily life and normal attendance, and will comprehensively review data analyzed weekly over the past year and the COVID-19 situation at the time of deciding academic operation plans. We aim to announce the new semester academic schedule by early February at the latest."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.