Chinese vaccine Sinopharm gets emergency approval by WHO

Geneva, May 7 (EFE).- The World Health Organisation approved emergency use of the Covid-19 vaccine made by Chinese company Sinopharm on Friday.

The approval means Sinopharm can be rolled out globally, a WHO statement said.

“The addition of this vaccine has the potential to rapidly accelerate Covid-19 vaccine access for countries seeking to protect health workers and populations at risk,” said Dr Mariângela Simão, WHO Assistant-Director General for Access to Health Products.

Sinopharm has been shown to be up to 79% effective in preventing severe cases of Covid and the symptoms associated with this disease, the chairman of an advisory WHO panel, Alejandro Cravioto, said at a press conference.

The authorization will allow the WHO’s COVAX scheme to enter into negotiations with the company to acquire its vaccines and distribute them among countries struggling to access them.

The Sinopharm vaccine is the first that is not developed by a western country to get WHO approval, although some 45 countries have already authorized and are using the inoculation in adults, according to Chinese state media.

Sixty-five million doses of the vaccine have been administered, the Global Times reported. EFE

is/ks