Malaysia mandates COVID-19 vaccinations for government staff

The announcement comes as the country aims to inoculate 80% of its 32-million population by the end of this year from the current 62.4% or 19.9 million who are fully vaccinated.

All federal staff must be vaccinated in order to boost public confidence and ensure government services can be delivered smoothly, said the Public Service Department in a statement.

Unvaccinated employees have until November 1 to complete their inoculations, while those who are unable to be vaccinated must submit health information verified by a government medical officer. Those who fail to get vaccinated by the deadline will face disciplinary action, the department said.

Out of Malaysia’s 1.6 million government employees, almost 98% have already been vaccinated, while 1.6% or 16,902 have yet to register under the country’s inoculation programme, the department said, according to Reuters.

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As of September 28, 43 million doses of the vaccine have been administered in the country, said Our World in Data. Malaysia has fully vaccinated more than 80% of its adult population. Prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and health minister Khairy Jamaluddin announced on their respective Twitter accounts that the 80% milestone was achieved at noon on September 21.