Kenya’s naval force has joined in government efforts against COVID-19 by conducting a vaccination exercise targeting seafarers.

The Kenya Navy Medical team on Tuesday gave inoculations to some 100 seafarers in Bandari, located in the coastal city of Mombasa, complementing national health authorities in the quest to contain the virus.

Cruise lines in the Indian Ocean have made the COVID -19 vaccination a mandatory requirement for the seafarers before setting sail on the international waters and entering foreign ports.

Navy officials encouraged the public to take the vaccines, urging them to be cautious of misinformation spreading around, especially on social media.

"This vaccine is safe and will offer a possible path out of this phase of the pandemic," said Captain (Dr) Hillary Gikuru.

Kenya rolled out its mass vaccination drive on March 5 after receiving some 1.2 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine. The country still expects to obtain some 25 million doses for its over 52 million population.

By Wednesday, some 569,244 people had received their first doses of the vaccine.

The ministry of health plans to roll out the administration of the second doses of COVID-19 vaccines by May 5.

The East African country has so far reported 148,128 virus infections with 2,420 deaths.