Music Festivals Offer To Help Belgium Government’s COVID-19 Vaccination Program

Music festival organizers in Belgium are offering to help the government in their extensive COVID-19 vaccination program, which is expected to start as soon as the vaccine becomes available.

The offer comes after the country’s music industry was severely hit by the ongoing global health crisis, with most of the people losing their jobs, Associated Press first reported. As a result, several festivals in the French-speaking regions of Brussels and Wallonia are quite interested in helping the government create employment opportunities for the people who are currently unemployed.

The festivals have formed a federation that comprises a large number of technicians who are ready to assist.

Speaking further about the matter, Damien Dufrasne, president of the federation, noted that people are eagerly waiting to help the government in the fight against COVID-19.

“Our sector has been at a standstill for many months, and our many staff are eager to bring their creativity and dedication to the fight against coronavirus,” Associated Press quoted Dufrasne, as saying.

The Belgian government is planning to vaccinate about 70% of the country’s population as soon as the vaccines become available. They are also planning to give the shots in groups as much as possible.

The federation said that they will help the authorities in setting up vaccination centers because of their expertise in creating huge pop-up venues for various music festivals.

Belgium has been one of the worst-affected areas as far as the virus is concerned. The country saw more than 2,100 cases and 86 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the country’s tally to 576,599 confirmed infections. The nation has also seen 16,547 deaths due to the life-threatening illness.

On the other hand, Prime Minister Alexander De Croo has already announced that the government will ease the coronavirus restrictions ahead of the festive season. The shops that provide non-essential items will be allowed to open once again starting Tuesday. However, bars and restaurants will remain closed.

De Croo addressed the people of Belgium last week when he announced the new guidelines.

“The situation in our country is better than a few weeks ago. Even if the situation is less dramatic now, it is still very dangerous. We are still in alert phase 4, according to the latest data. If we are not careful now, we are putting all of these efforts at risk. We have to get through the winter. Our common goal must be to keep the figures decreasing, and then to keep them low,” De Croo said.