Emirates approves use of Sinopharm's new protein-based vaccine
The United Arab Emirates, through a statement issued by the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) has approved the use of the new vaccine from the Chinese company Sinopharm CNBG. The use of this new inoculation comes for emergency use and after a strict and tough study that has evaluated the data and monitoring of giving this injection in the Gulf country. After assessing the risks, the ministry has stated that the use of these doses already complies with the regulations and laws put in place by the nation.
This new Sinopharm cradle will be used as a booster dose for people who have already received the full course of Covid-19 vaccination and will be available from January 2022. This inoculation is based on recombinant proteins that, when injected, target the spike protein used by the virus to enter the human body and attack it. The study to approve its use has been carried out on people vaccinated with the two doses and the results are highly promising as the efficacy rate was up to 100% in antibody production, and in addition, people inoculated with this dose did not suffer any side effects.
The ministry has stated that the use of this is to improve the prevention of its population against the Covid-19 pandemic that is being experienced at the moment, in addition to the rise of the new omicron variant, which is proving to be very contagious. The health department has also added that this vaccine has demonstrated improved immunological capacity against the new variants of the virus that have emerged.
The vaccine will be produced and distributed by Hayat Biotech, an Emirati company that is part of G42 and Sinopharm CNBG. These two companies have already announced their cooperation in the manufacture of the first 'Arab' vaccine against the coronavirus, which was presented by Sheikh Adbullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and Chinese State Councillor and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi at an event in Abu Dhabi.
The company is a key player in the manufacture of the Chinese vaccine, as well as its distribution domestically and internationally. This new protein-based vaccine is similar to the one created by Emirates, with the advantages that it can be kept at normal temperatures emitted by a refrigerator or cooler, facilitating its use in low-income countries that do not have the means to freeze and store vaccines. Hayat-Vax is manufactured in Ras Al Khaiman and Kizad, an industrial zone in Abu Dhabi City. These two plants are capable of producing around two million doses per month of the Emirati vaccine.
For Sinopharm's part, this vaccine has been able to stop the virus in a very effective way and has been applied to millions of people around the world and has meant a small step, in conjunction with the other types of vaccines, towards the defeat of Covid-19. The UAE's confidence in this Chinese vaccine is such that since August this year, it has allowed youngsters between the ages of 3 and 17 to receive doses following a clinical study in which it demonstrated its efficacy in almost 1,000 youngsters and revealed that it is safe for use and complies with approved regulations.
The United Arab Emirates is one of the best performing countries in the world in terms of its campaign against the coronavirus. 100% of its citizens have received at least one dose of the vaccine. Since the start of the pandemic, the country has recorded almost 800,000 cases of people infected with the virus, and its rate is 91.91% per 100,000 population, very moderate compared to other countries. Since the first case in March, 2,158 people have died of Covid-19 in the country.
