Paris, June 3 More than 26.58 million people aged 18 or older, representing 50.6 per cent of the adult population in France, have received the first Covid-19 vaccine shot as the inoculation program continues at a faster pace, according to data from the Health Ministry.
France, which extended its vaccine rollout to all adults on Monday, would allow teens aged 12 to 18 to get a Covid-19 jab from mid-June, President Emmanuel Macron announced on Wednesday, marking another milestone in the country's inoculation campaign.
Macron added that the country's health authorities will specify the conditions to vaccinate teenagers in the coming days, reports Xinhua news agency.
In a bid to return to pre-pandemic life, the French government has vowed to go all out on vaccine rollout to bring down the coronavirus-linked infections and deaths, and contain the spread of new strains which could trigger another wave.
On June 9, France will enter a new stage in easing pandemic restrictions.
Gyms will resume activities and foreign tourists will enter the country with a health pass.
The night curfew will be pushed back by two hours to 11 p.m. before being removed later this month.
All the restrictive rules to contain the virus will be lifted at the end of June.
"We must be very vigilant because in many of our neighbours the new variants are increasing the number of cases," the President said.
"It's necessary to have reasonable optimism to remain vigilant, to respect the rules and to maintain vigilance till the end to avoid that the virus circulates again," he added.
France's cumulative number of infections now stands at 5,739,995, while the death toll has increased to 109,787.
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