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Roundup: Official figures shed light on Chinese vaccines' role in global COVID-19 fight

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E-mail Xinhua, June 07, 2021

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BEIJING, June 7 (Xinhua) -- China has made contributions to improving COVID-19 vaccine accessibility and affordability in developing countries, according to a senior official.

Zeng Yixin, deputy head of the National Health Commission (NHC), made the remarks while unveiling official figures on China's vaccine development, vaccine donations and exports to others countries, as well as its national vaccination drive during an interview with Xinhua Sunday.

TWENTY-ONE VACCINES

China has witnessed 21 COVID-19 vaccines enter clinical trials, said Zeng, also chief of the vaccine research section of the scientific research group under the State Council inter-agency task force for COVID-19 response.

So far, four COVID-19 vaccines have been granted conditional marketing approval and three have been authorized for emergency use within the country.

Eight Chinese COVID-19 vaccines have been approved for phase III clinical trial overseas, and one messenger RNA (mRNA) COVID-19 vaccine met the ethical requirements for phase III clinical trial overseas, Zeng said.

Clinical trials of China-developed nasal spray and inhaled COVID-19 vaccines are currently underway, he noted, adding that medical experts will study the safety and effectiveness of the tested vaccines after completing the collection of clinical trial data.

350 MLN DOSES

China has supplied more than 350 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines abroad, including donations to more than 80 countries and exports to over 40 countries, the official said.

China has pledged to provide 10 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to the COVAX cause, with the first batch officially rolling off the production line on June 1 this year.

China's research, development and application of vaccines has been marked by active cooperation with other countries, he added.

There has been cooperation on phase III clinical trials between Chinese vaccine developers and relevant organizations in more than 20 countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Brazil, Uzbekistan, the Philippines and Pakistan.

China's valuable experience in fighting the epidemic is always putting people and their lives first, Zeng said.

China has delivered on its promise to contribute to improving COVID-19 vaccine accessibility and affordability in developing countries, he added.

70 PCT

At least 70 percent of the target population in China is expected to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by the end of this year, according to Zeng.

The official noted that the locally transmitted COVID-19 cases reported recently suggest that the epidemic prevention and control situation remains grim.

Over 763 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines had been administered across China as of Saturday, NHC figures showed.

100 YEARS OLD

The oldest vaccine recipients in China's vaccination campaign, open to people aged over 18, are more than 100 years old, according to the health official.

Experts have already debated the safety and effectiveness of inoculating people aged 3 to 17, Zeng noted, saying that following approval by relevant authorities, vaccination will be open to people in this age group according to their needs. Enditem