May 11, 2021 – Prime Minister, Dr. the Rt. Hon Keith Mitchell continues to play a leading role in encouraging Grenadians to get vaccinated.

Dr. Mitchell and his Cabinet colleagues have embarked on a series of outreach efforts, collaborating with the Ministry of Health to host vaccination drives in their respective constituencies. 

On Tuesday, more than 60 persons turned out to the Beausejour Community Centre to be vaccinated. Dr. Mitchell, who is also the Parliamentary Representative for St. George North West, expressed satisfaction with the turnout, during a visit to the site Tuesday morning.  

The Prime Minister cited a need for further public sensitisation on vaccination, ensuring that people have access to accurate information and making vaccination available to them within their own community.

He described the constituency-based vaccination drive as an important initiative that should be pursued by all persons of influence.

Dr. Mitchell said, “As parliamentary representatives, we felt that we should take responsibility to encourage people within our own communities. This is not to say that vaccination is political, it is not. In fact, the opposition needs to take the same approach. Vaccination is about saving lives, regardless of political or other affiliation. We therefore have to get into the communities and make the people more aware of the need for vaccination, and also, to make vaccination more accessible to them.”

With the expiration date for the vaccines looming on the horizon, Dr. Mitchell said, given the situation in many countries, even in some very close to Grenada, every effort must be made to utilise the doses available.

He said, “If we go around the country replicating this initiative, we will get additional numbers. We must increase the public relations effort and we ought not to let the vaccines go to waste. Vaccination is key to getting us back to normal. In some countries, demand far outweighs supply; here in Grenada, we have available supply and we should therefore use it.” 

The constituency-based COVID-19 vaccination drive will continue across the country in the coming weeks. To date, more than 13,744 Grenadians have been vaccinated, with 5,775 receiving both doses.