Bhutan has started giving Covid-19 booster shots to senior citizens and priority groups as the Himalayan kingdom tries to stave off the Omicron variant, health ministry officials said.

Those aged 65 and older, overseas travellers, health workers, sufferers from chronic ailments and all adults living in “high risk” areas are eligible, the officials said.

“Bhutan becomes the first country in the South Asian region to administer booster doses,” public service broadcaster BBS said in a report. Officials said Bhutan planned to inoculate more than 228,000 people in a week.

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