UAE lowers age requirement for COVID-19 vaccines to 16

DUBAI — The United Arab Emirates has lowered the minimum age requirement to receive a COVID-19 vaccination to 16, from 18 previously, the ministry of health said on Sunday.

The UAE, made of up seven emirates, is offering all residents and citizens free of charge a vaccine manufactured by Chinese state-backed pharmaceutical giant Sinopharm.

The emirate of Dubai alone is offering citizens and residents the choice of either the Sinopharm or the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

The statement carried by the country's National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority did not specify which vaccine the new minimum age applied to.