Seoul, Feb 22 (IANS): Less than half of South Koreans are willing to receive COVID-19 vaccine shots immediately, without waiting for further reports on those vaccines' effects, an opinion poll showed on Monday.

In the survey conducted on 1,020 people aged 18 or over by the Korea Society Opinion Institute from last Friday to Saturday, only 45.8 percent said they are willing to be vaccinated "right away" when their turn for COVID-19 vaccine shots comes.

Another 45.7 percent responded they will delay their vaccinations to "watch the situation" regarding the vaccines' effects, while 5.1 percent said they will refuse vaccine shots entirely, according to the poll result. The remaining 3.4 percent said they are not sure.

The survey also showed that 55.8 percent of the respondents have confidence in the government's handling of the national vaccination program, while 41.1 percent have distrust.

The survey, commissioned by radio broadcaster TBS, has a 95 percent confidence level with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, reports Yonhap news agency.

The survey result came as the country is set to kick off a nationwide vaccination program on Friday, starting with staff members and patients aged below 65 at infection-prone nursing homes, rehabilitation facilities and sanatoriums across the country.

But public concerns are still lingering over the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, especially after the government postponed the use of AstraZeneca's vaccine, one of the vaccines South Korea has opted for, for people aged 65 or older, pending further clinical trial results.