Dr. Chisema was speaking on Tuesday during a daily COVID - 19 update in Lilongwe.

He said the Ministry will continue to take progressive steps to ensure that those eligible willfully get the jab.

Meanwhile, Minister of Health Khumbidze Chipondahas encouraged expectant mothers to go for the jab saying it's benefits outweigh it's risks.

She added Malawi is expected to receive at least 1.5 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine by end of May this year.

The Minister has since disclosed that in the past 24 hours, Malawi has registered a 4 percent COVID - 19 positivity rate.

The country needs to register a positivity rate of below 5 percent for sometime before authorities can begin to consider easing the country's COVID - 19 containment measures.