Riyadh – Mubasher: Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Health has started on Tuesday registering citizens and foreign residents for vaccination against COVID-19 through "Sehaty" application, state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

On 10 December, the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine for use in the kingdom.

The health ministry reiterated the safety and efficacy of the vaccine, noting that it will be provided free of charge to nationals and citizens alike.

The vaccination process will be carried out on three stages, each targetting a specific group. The first stage will include citizens and residents, aged 65 years and above, workers facing the greatest coronavirus risk, people suffering from obesity and immunity diseases as well as those suffering from two or more of some illnesses such as asthma, diabetes, and chronic kidney and heart diseases.

The second stage targets citizens and residents, aged more than 50 years old, the remaining health practitioners, people suffering from one chronic disease, among others. 

The third stage will see the vaccination of all citizens and residents willing to take the vaccine.