More than 1.8 million students and over 239,000 personnel in higher education have been vaccinated against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), data released by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) on Thursday, Dec. 9, showed.
Citing data as of Dec. 3, CHED said that based on its vaccination update coming from the regions, at least half or 45.91 percent of the total population of tertiary students nationwide have been vaccinated against COVID-19.
Based on the data from CHED, there are 4,007,795 students in the tertiary level. Of this number, 1, 839,846 students in various higher education institutions (HEIs) have received COVID-19 vaccines.
Meanwhile, CHED said that vaccination rate among teaching and non-teaching personnel in HEIs continues to increase.
As of Dec. 3, CHED said that 82.45 percent or 239,431 HEI personnel have received COVID-19 jabs. There are 290,380 teaching and non-teaching personnel in various HEIs nationwide.
In a statement issued Nov. 29, CHED Chairperson Popoy De Vera underscored the importance of vaccinating tertiary personnel and students especially in relation to the conduct of limited face-to-face classes.
De Vera said that the vaccination drive in higher education has “gained momentum” all over the country but the whole higher education sector needs a more urgent and “aggressive effort.”
Given this, CHED participated in the three-day National Vaccination Days on Nov. 29 to Dec. 1. He also urged those who are not yet vaccinated to get COVID-19 jabs on Dec. 15 to 17, the second round of vaccination days, to reach herd immunity.
“The vaccination rates for faculty, staff, and students continue to increase but we need to push harder during the three-day vaccination drive to facilitate limited face-to-face classes,” De Vera said.