On Tuesday, the vaccination drive for children aged between six months and four years began at a hospital in Tokyo. According to the Xinhua news agency, on Monday, the health ministry started to distribute the vaccines to municipalities, and further inoculations are set to follow in other places of the country when the local governments are ready.

The vaccines targeting the original strain will be administered over three shots for young children. According to the health ministry, each shot contains one-tenth of the dose given to adults. The first two shots will be administered at a gap of three weeks, while a third dose will be given eight weeks after the second inoculation.

The health ministry approved the Pfizer vaccine, making it the first COVID-19 vaccine available in Japan for that age group.