LIMA, April 13 (Xinhua) -- More than half of Peru's target population has received three doses of a vaccine against COVID-19, marking "significant progress" in the country's vaccination drive, Health Minister Jorge Lopez Pena said Wednesday.

Despite the progress, there remains a "large vulnerable" segment that could be infected, resparking "high rates of hospitalized patients," the minister warned at an event in the north of the capital Lima, where he helped launch a campaign for a safe Holy Week without COVID-19.

Since Peru's vaccination campaign launched in February 2021, 14,324,593 people had been fully vaccinated and boostered, according to data from the Health Ministry.

However, due to the ongoing risk of viral outbreaks, the government will continue to make face masks mandatory in enclosed spaces to curb the spread of the disease, said Lopez.

"We cannot yet (forgo the face mask) unless we reach 80 percent" of the target population being boostered, said Lopez. "We have to get there, if we don't, we cannot consider lifting restrictions."

The head of immunization at the ministry, Maria Martinez, said 80 percent could be reached by the end of June.

As of April 1, Peruvians over 18 years of age must show proof of having gotten at least three doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to enter restaurants, shops and other establishments.

Starting this month, the ministry also began to apply a fourth booster shot to those aged 70 and older, as well as to healthcare workers, which reached 39,680 citizens so far.

The country had seen 3,552,467 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 212,528 deaths due to the virus since the onset of the pandemic, according to the latest figures released Tuesday.