Gaborone, Dec 2 (IANS): Botswana has achieved the World Health Organisation (WHO) target of vaccinating 40 per cent of the entire population by December 2021, President Mokgweetsi Masisi said.

Masisi made this announcement on Wednesday when addressing the nation about the southern African country's latest response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

He said that as of November 29, an estimated 1,053,361 people, or 75.7 per cent of the targeted Botswana citizens and residents aged over 18, have received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, while 950,973, or 68.4 per cent, have been fully vaccinated, Xinhua news agency reported.

The country's population is around 2.35 million.

The vaccination rate also exceeds the 64 per cent target Botswana had set to achieve by the end of this year, Masisi added, noting that it is a remarkable achievement given the vaccine delivery challenges for the African continent.

So far, Botswana has reported 195,068 Covid cases and 2,418 deaths.