Last checked at 
* https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps/vaccination-rollout-and-access/
* https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps/
(Adds details, background)
PARIS, May 4 (Reuters) - France remains on track to
administer a first COVID-19 vaccine dose to 20 million people by
mid-May, a health ministry official said on Tuesday, a target
that would amount to almost a third of the country's population.
This week's COVID-19 vaccine injections are set to top the 3
million level this week versus 2.7 million last week, the
official added.
France is gradually unwinding its third lockdown and is
hoping an uptick of the vaccination campaign will allow it to
lift more restrictive measures over the coming months.
As of Monday, more than 16.1 million people in France had
received at least one vaccine shot, a total representing 24.1%
of the population and 30.7% of the adult population.
Almost 6.7 people had received two shots, meaning 10% of the
population is now fully vaccinated, versus, for example, 32% in
the United States.
France's new daily number of COVID-19 infections fell to an
almost two-month low on average on Monday, a figure warranting
the government's decision to start easing the country's third
lockdown.
But after dropping for five days in a row, the number of
people hospitalised for the disease went up by 132, a second
consecutive rise, at 28,950, a figure that shows the hospital
system is still under considerable strain.
The health ministry official also said there was increased
confidence in the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine and that
the Johnson & Johnson shot had an "important role" to
play in France's vaccination strategy.
Both shots have been linked to extremely rare but
potentially fatal blood clotting, which has damaged trust in
them among some in the general public.
(Reporting by Matthias Blamont and Benoit Van Overstraeten
Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Mark Heinrich)
