Moscow raffles cars and apartment to boost vaccination campaign

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin announced on Sunday that residents of the Russian capital vaccinated for the first time against the coronavirus would participate in a raffle to win a car.

The move comes at a time when authorities are trying to speed up the vaccination campaign in Russia, which stalled while new infections are on the rise in Moscow and across the country.

“From June 14 to July 11, 2021, citizens who receive their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine will become participants in a car lottery,” Sobianin announced on its website.

Five cars will be raffled off each week, each valued at around 1 million rubles ($ 13,900).

“But, of course, the main gain for those who get vaccinated cannot be compared to any car: it is their own health and peace of mind,” Sobyanin said.

The mayor – who was vaccinated with Russian Sputnik V in May of last year – added that two days ago he received a reminder And it feels good”.

Later sunday Authorities in the Moscow region have announced that they will also raffle off a three-room apartment from among those who get their first shot between June 15 and June 25.

Russia registered 14,723 new infections on Sunday, 7,704 of them in Moscow, the highest number in six months in the main focus of the epidemic in the country. Since the start of the pandemic, Russia has recorded more than 5.2 million cases, of which 126,430 people have died.

Sobyanin sounded the alarm on the increase in cases earlier this week, announcing the reopening of field hospitals and introducing a “non-working” week until June 20. All non-essential workers will be on leave but will retain their pay. However, they were not ordered to stay at home.

On Saturday, Sobianin ordered children’s play areas in malls and parks to close until June 20, banned restaurants from serving between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. and called for telecommuting.

Despite the introduction of a strict lockdown after the pandemic swept through Russia last spring, authorities lifted most restrictions in mid-summer in a bid to protect the tough economy.

So far, 18 million people, or 12% of the population, have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and polls show that most Russians do not plan to get the vaccine..

Russia started its mass vaccination campaign in December, featuring the self-produced Sputnik V vaccine, touted by Russian President Vladimir Putin as the best in the world, which is free and widely available in Moscow.

Since the registration of Sputnik V in August, Russia has approved three other vaccines for public use: EpiVacCorona, CoviVac and the single-dose Sputnik Light.

Vaccines manufactured abroad are not available in Russia.

The Kremlin said Putin was vaccinated against the coronavirus in private, but did not disclose which vaccine he used.

(With information from AFP)

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