Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I'll just give my remarks in English to go easy on the interpreters, given this virtual environment. I will say that I'm very happy to be here with you all, and I thank the committee for the opportunity to share an update on our work to protect Canadians against COVID-19.
Of course, many people have used the word “unprecedented” to describe this pandemic. In fact, around the world, we've talked about the unprecedented nature of a global pandemic of this sort. Besides being unprecedented in its scope, it is obviously also unpredictable, as the virus has changed and shifted and as we've attempted to keep ahead of our knowledge on how best to protect people from COVID-19.
As we see case numbers rising across the country, Canada and indeed the world have worked hard to manage COVID-19 and to protect our citizens in each of our jurisdictions. Every step of the way, since January 2020, our government has responded and adapted to information as it has evolved. Information is coming to us in real time. On many fronts, we learn as we go, and I want to take a moment to thank the scientists, the researchers and the public health officials who have worked non-stop to better understand this virus, to better understand measures to protect against this virus, and to better understand how it's affecting the many communities in our country.
Mr. Chair, it's important to establish that context as we address the important questions before us today. All levels of government are racing to ramp up vaccination, to suppress the rapid spread of variants of concern and indeed of the virus itself, and to help bring the pandemic under control. As of April 16, more than 12 million vaccines have been distributed to the provinces and territories, and we delivered over 10 million doses by Easter weekend, which exceeded our initial goal of six million doses for the first quarter of this year.
As of now, more than nine million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in Canada; 81% of people 80 years of age and over have received their first dose, and 10% have received both doses. The Government of Canada is going to continue to do its job to make sure more and more doses are delivered throughout the country, and will also be there for provinces and territories for any additional support or resources they might need.
We're also going to continue to provide advice to Canadians about vaccination and about how to protect themselves against COVID-19 as we see the virus accelerate in many jurisdictions across the country. We work with real-time data, and Health Canada carefully reviews any new information that becomes available so that our advice continues to evolve and be based on the best and latest science.
As the vaccine rollout continues, we continue to work with partners in industry and the not-for-profit sector to increase testing and screening capacity across the country. Testing and screening continue to be the foundation of slowing the spread of COVID-19, although of course it's very important that provinces and territories also manage people well and in a supportive way who have tested positive for COVID-19. Mr. Chair, it's important to know if people are sick, and it's important to support them when they are. That's the best way to stop the spread of COVID-19.
On testing, as of April 8, 2021, more than 25 million rapid tests had been shipped to provinces and territories. That's 25 million, Mr. Chair. When combined with the federal allocation, over 41 million rapid tests have been distributed across the country. Not only have we delivered those tests, but we've also been working with provinces—