5,000 doses of Sinopharm Vaccine brought to the Maldives

5,000 doses of China's Sinopharm Vaccine has been brought to the Maldives.

Speaking during a press conference by the HEOC, Spokesperson Dr. Nazla Rafeeq said that a well-wisher had donated 5,000 doses of the Sinopharm Vaccine to the Maldives, which has already arrived in the Maldives.

She added that the vaccine is now under their storage.

Dr. Nazla highlighted that after the necessary research and investigation, the Maldives Food & Drug Authority (MFDA) will approve the vaccine to be given in the Maldives.

Sinopharm announced on 30 December that phase three trials of the vaccine showed that it was 79% effective - lower than that of Pfizer and Moderna.

However, the United Arab Emirates, which approved a Sinopharm vaccine earlier this month, said the vaccine was 86% effective, according to interim results of its phase three trial.

While vaccinations are now ongoing in the Maldives, currently 'Covishield' developed by Oxford-AstraZeneca is being used. These were 100,000 doses that were donated by India.

The Maldivian government has reached an agreement with AstraZeneca to buy 700,000 additional doses, which are likely to arrive within March.