DHAKA: While the WHO has already approved the Sinovac corona vaccine on June 1, the Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) said that this is the fifth vaccine for which emergency use authorization has been provided for Bangladesh. Earlier, emergency use authorization was granted to another Chinese vaccine Sinopharm, Russian Sputnik V, Oxford-AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines.
DGDA made the announcement Sunday, saying "CoronaVac", manufactured by Sinovac Life Sciences Co. Ltd, is the fifth Covid-19 vaccine to get emergency use approval in Bangladesh. It has given the green light after the leading local pharmaceuticals company Incepta Vaccine Ltd applied for its approval for emergency use in the country.
Hualong Yan, minister-counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Dhaka, Saturday said the second batch of Sinopharm vaccines donated by Chinese government is ready for delivery by June 13. About 1,000 medical students from Bangladesh's four top leading medical colleges have recently taken their first shot of the Covid-19 vaccine thanks to Sinopharm vaccines donated by China.
Bangladesh kicked off its Covid-19 vaccination drive on January 28 to rein in the pandemic that has so far spread across the country. On Sunday, the country's Directorate General of Health Services reported 1,676 new cases of Covid-19 and 38 new deaths, bringing the number of total cases to 810,990 and the total death toll to 12,839.
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