The Cuban government has begun to vaccinate children as young as two years old for COVID-19, the island’s state media reported, in a bid to get kids back into classrooms.
While other countries have said they will eventually vaccinate children, Cuba is believed to be the first to give Covid-19 vaccines to toddlers. In September, it declared that its homegrown vaccines were safe to give to young children. Throughout the pandemic, most in-person classes have been suspended on the island. Instead of going to school, children watch educational programming on television for hours each day. Home internet remains a rarity in the communist-run nation. Cuba has largely focused on developing its own vaccines, rather than depend on other countries for the medications.
