The rate of first dose vaccination in Northern Ireland is now six times greater per head of adult population than in the Republic of Ireland.
At least 25.7 percent of adults in Northern Ireland have now received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccination, with the Republic of Ireland lagging some way behind at 4.2 percent of its adult population.
The news comes as health officials in Dublin redouble their efforts at procuring and distributing the vaccines to at-risk sections of the population, with a further 212,000 doses expected to arrive later this month.
The vaccine programme for over-70s in nursing homes is “almost complete” according to HSE chief clinical officer Colm Henry, with 1.7 percent of the population fully vaccinated having received two doses.
The vast majority of the 166,863 first doses administered were Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, whilst almost 22,000 AstraZeneca vaccines arrived in the country for distribution on Thursday.
373,414 people in Northern Ireland had received their first dose by February 11, prompting Chief Medical Officer Dr Michael McBride to predict restrictions will be lifted when 70 to 80 percent of the population is vaccinated.
The HSE has said it expects 40,000 people to receive the second dose of the vaccine in the coming week, as it prepares to open vaccination centres around the country, including the Helix in Dublin.
The health service will now focus vaccinating those over the age of 85, using GP surgeries to administer the first dose.
The use of hotels and community halls has been ruled out by the HSE however due to concerns around storage and security.