People will now be able to register for Covid-19 vaccine through imo, according to a press release of the popular messaging app . The move  aims to amplify the mass vaccination efforts of the Bangladesh government, read the press release issued on Wednesday. Read: Registration for Covid vaccination to start again Thursday “ The key function of this new feature is to make the vaccine registration process more accessible and seamless for the people,” it read. Users will be able to find the newly added feature under the “explore” tab within the imo app, named “Covid-19 Vaccine Appointment. Read Chinese firms working with Bangladeshi partners for vaccine co-production They will be greeted with a step-by-step tutorial of the vaccine registration process for their convenience. The users will be redirected to the Surokkha website for appointments so that  they can select their desired hospitals. Read: Covid vaccine: Expat workers can now sign up on Surokkha Then they will be allocated a suitable time and date via SMS so that they can receive their vaccine jabs, explained the press release.

Amid the deteriorating coronavirus situation, the government is going to resume the countrywide mass registration for receiving Covid-19 jabs from Thursday (July 8), said the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) on Tuesday. “The registration process will resume for all from Thursday morning,” Prof Dr Mizanur Rahman, Director (MIS) of the DGHS, told UNB.   “Currently, the registration is ongoing only in three categories on a priority basis. As the mass registration process resumes, all the categories will be available for registering through the Surokkha app as before,” he said.    Earlier, on June 30, Dr Shamsul Haque, member secretary of the Vaccine Deployment Committee, also made the same announcement at a virtual press briefing arranged by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). He said the Sinopharm jabs will be administered at 40 centers in Dhaka city and at all district hospitals from 8am to 3pm every day as in the past. Also read: Bangladesh’s Covid catastrophe worsens; 163 more lives lost Dr Haque said the vaccine will also be given at Bangladesh Institute of Tropical and Infectious Diseases (BITID) in Chattogram and Saidpur Sadar Hospital during the same period. He said those who got registered earlier but could not receive the vaccines will be given the Sinopharm jabs now while the medical and university students and those who are on the priority lists can get registered for the vaccine. “Everyone will get an SMS from a vaccination centre after the registration and all must receive the vaccine at that centre accordingly. “In this case, the vaccine card and NID card must be brought for receiving the vaccine.” Dr Haque said the Covid vaccination centers will remain out of the purview of the lockdown. “Those who have vaccine cards will be able to go to the relevant centre showing it.” He said the expatriate workers who stay in countries where the Sinopharm vaccine is accepted also can receive the vaccine at the centers both in Dhaka and outside. “But no one will get the vaccine without registration.” Also read: Chinese firms working with Bangladeshi partners for vaccine co-production Besides, Dr Haque said, the Pfizer vaccine will also be administered at seven centers--Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, Salimullah Medical College and Hospital, Mugda Medical College Hospital, Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Kurmitola General Hospital, and Sheikh Russel National Gastroliver Institute and Hospital—in the capital. He said the outbound expatriate workers who are not allowed to return to their workplaces without getting Pfizer vaccine can only receive the vaccine at the seven centers as per the list from the Manpower Export Promotion Bureau. Dr Haque said those who are supposed to receive Sinopharm jabs from these centres will have to go to alternative centres.

As the nationwide vaccination drive was launched in Bangladesh in February, a high willingness was found among people to be vaccinated, according to a recent study. However, there were many barriers among the rural and urban slum people to get vaccinated. Nearly one-third of respondents from rural and urban slums reported that they did not know about the Covid-19 vaccine registration process in the first place.  Among those who knew about vaccine registration, many did not get registered since they were unsure about their eligibility for the vaccine. Researchers from Brac Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) presented the study findings at the webinar "Covid-19 Vaccination: Willingness and Practice in Bangladesh" Thursday. The study analysed data from three surveys conducted from late January to the end of March 2021 to examine the willingness to be vaccinated in Bangladesh. BIGD Executive Director Dr Imran Matin said: "Our research has identified the urban slum and youth as 'hotspot' target populations to focus on during vaccine registration communications. As we delve deeper, there will soon be a need for implementation research on mass vaccination." Diana Mitlin, professor at the University of Manchester, said: "We know that those who live in informal settlements are often badly treated, not getting the services they need, leading to a history of suspicion. The importance of messaging and creating excitement around health services seems to be important – especially in reducing the anxiety and negative concerns around vaccination and can be a scope for improving the relationship of these communities with the government." Dr Shakila Sultana, deputy program manager of Expanded Program on Immunisation (EPI) of the Directorate General of Health Services said: "The government decided to slow down registration communication since we are currently facing a vaccine shortage. We will start proper communications once we can manage the supply side constraint."

Dhaka University (DU) on Wednesday asked its student to sign up for Covid-19 vaccine registration by March 31. Students can apply for registration through the Dhaka University website. A notice signed by DU Registrar Md Enamuzzaman said, "Students will have to complete their registration through the university's website by 31 March. The university registration number or institutional email ID will be needed to complete registration."