Namibia's Vice President Nangolo Mbumba receives his first jab of Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine in Windhoek, Namibia, on May 21, 2021. (Photo by Musa C Kaseke/Xinhua)

WINDHOEK, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Namibia is pushing ahead with the COVID-19 vaccination drive to meet the required 60 percent herd immunity in a move to lower the country's infection rate as well as reduce the number of hospitalized persons, the country's Vice President Nangolo Mbumba said Friday.

Mbumba said this following his successful inoculation at Namibia's Windhoek Central Hospital, accompanied by his wife Sustjie Mbumba.

The Vice President who received his first COVID-19 jab of Sinopharm donated to Namibia by the Chinese government said Namibians must get vaccinated as the southwestern African country pushes to avoid rising numbers and being attacked by the mutating virus.

"We are here to get vaccinated and we want to encourage everyone to be vaccinated and drastically reduce the number of people that will be hospitalized or attacked by the virus. It is also important to continue abiding by the laid-down regulations to avoid super spreading of the pandemic," he said.

Mbumba, a survivor of COVID-19, said vaccination is one of the sure ways of protecting the population from the pandemic.

The government will continue to avail financial resources to drive the vaccination campaign as well as make sure the vaccine is easily accessible to everyone who needs it free of charge, he added.

According to the country's Ministry of Health and Social Services, Namibia has managed to vaccinate 59,114 people as of Thursday.