TOKYO: Japan can achieve its target of vaccinating all people hoping to receive COVID-19 vaccines by October-November, regulatory reform minister KONO Taro said Wednesday.

Japan will probably remain able to administer around 1.2 million coronavirus vaccine shots per day, Kono also said at an off-session meeting of the Cabinet Committee of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the Diet, the country’s parliament.

“I’d like to apologize to those affected,” Kono said, regarding suspended or restricted vaccine reservation services at many municipalities due to a shortage of vaccine supply from the central government.

The central government has already told local governments of the planned supply volumes, Kono said, expressing hope that the situation will improve.

On a halt to accepting new reservations under workplace inoculation programs, Kono said he did not expect that the demand would be so strong. “It’s my fault,” he added.

JIJI Press