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Covid vaccine: Pakistan starts production of CanSino, China's single-dose jab

Dubai - The first batch of the vaccine will be available at the end of May.

Pakistan has started production of China’s single-dose Covid-19 vaccine CanSino at the National Institute of Health (NIH) plant that was set up in April, Pakistan’s official news agency reported.

The facility will produce three million doses per month and, as a result, significantly reduce the country’s dependence on importing the vaccine from other countries.

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The first batch of the vaccine will be available for Pakistanis at the end of May.

Quoting the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations, and Coordination, the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported that the country would largely be sufficiently equipped in meeting its Covid-19 vaccine needs after the production of CanSino vaccine.

The official said out of the total stock of vaccines imported from China, around 91 per cent was purchased by the government and another nine per cent was gifted by the Chinese administration.

Currently, Pakistan is inoculating vaccines to those aged 18 and above. This makes around 100 million out of 220 million people eligible for the vaccine.

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“We've signed deals for over 30 million doses. We'd continue to procure more vaccines for the rest of the year and it should be reassuring for the people,” the health ministry official told the news agency.

The official said over 4,300 reports of vaccine adverse effects were reported. Nearly all reports were of mild and expected side effects and 90 per cent involved pain at the localised site of injection or fever. Only six serious cases were reported, which were investigated thoroughly.