IMost high-rise buildings in Beijing are now posting notes urging residents between the ages of 18 and 59 to get vaccinated. Some who don’t get a friendly call from the neighborhood committee. But there is no compulsory vaccination. China is only pushing its vaccination campaign at half speed. The internal requirement to have administered 50 million doses by the Spring Festival two weeks ago has not yet been achieved. According to the Bloomberg agency, only 40 million syringes have been used so far. This is remarkable in a country that seldom admits to having missed its goals.
China is far slower than the United States in the race for herd immunity. According to Bloomberg’s vaccination tracker, the People’s Republic has only provided 2.89 people per 100 inhabitants with at least one can of vaccine. America has 20 out of 100. If Beijing keeps the pace, it won’t achieve herd immunity until the end of 2022.
In the meantime, these findings seemed to arouse nervousness in Beijing. At the end of January the party newspaper “Global Times” warned: “Only if China’s vaccination rates keep roughly pace with those in America and Europe can China continue to lead and continue to make the greatest contribution to the recovery of the global economy.” must be high on the list of herd immunity ”. Otherwise, the country will only be able to open its borders much later and lose the lead it has achieved by successfully containing the virus. This is “a new test for China,” warned the newspaper.