(AFP): In a bid to boost coronavirus vaccination, Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin today (Sunday) announced that residents of the Russian capital who get their first coronavirus jab will now take part in a lottery to win a car.
The move comes as the authorities seek to speed up Russia’s vaccination drive that has stagnated while new infections in Moscow and across the country are on the rise. The Russian capital reported 7,704 new infections on Sunday, the most in a single day since Dec. 24.
“From June 14 until July 11, 2021, citizens who get their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine will become participants in a car lottery,” Sobyanin announced on his website. According to the announcement, every week five cars will be raffled out, each worth around 1 million rubles ($13,900).
The mayor – who was vaccinated with Russia’s Sputnik V in May last year – added that two days ago he got a booster jab and “feels well”. Sobyanin sounded the alarm over the spike in cases earlier this week and announced the reopening of field hospitals and introduced a “non-working” week until June 20.
All non-essential workers will be out of the office, but will retain their salary. However, they have not been ordered to stay at home. The mayor also reintroduced a curfew for bars and restaurants that bans them from serving customers between 11pm and 6am.
Russia started its mass vaccination campaign in December, with the home-grown Sputnik V vaccine – touted by Russian President Vladimir Putin as the best in the world – that is free and widely available in Moscow.
Since the registration of Sputnik V in August, Russia has approved three more vaccines for public use — EpiVacCorona, CoviVac and the one-dose Sputnik Light. Foreign-made vaccines are not available in Russia.
