WHO Verifies 11th Vaccine for COVID-19

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported yesterday that it has validated an 11th vaccine for COVID-19 emergency use listing (EUL).

The vaccine is manufactured by CanSino Biologics, a China-based biopharmaceutical company that has produced the vaccine called Convidecia, adding to a growing portfolio of Chinese manufactured vaccines validated by the WHO.

According to the announcement, the Convidecia vaccine was assessed under the WHO’s EUL, which assesses the quality, safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines as a prerequisite for COVAX vaccine supply, and allows countries to expedite their own regulatory approval to import and administer COVID-19 vaccines.

Earlier this month, Convidecia was also reviewed by WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE), which formulates vaccine specific policies and recommendations for vaccines’ use in populations like specific age groups and pregnant or lactating women. It also makes recommendations for intervals between shots.

Convidecia is based on the spike ‘S’ protein of SARS-CoV-2 and administered as a single dose for individuals 18 years and over.

The Convidecia vaccine is 64 percent effective against symptomatic disease and up to 92 percent effective against severe disease. The announcement follows similar listings last year from China-based manufacturers Sinovac Biotech and Sinopharm.

According to the South China Morning Post, Convidecia was approved for use as a mixed booster shot for China in February. Other nations that have already approved CanSino’s vaccine for emergency use include Mexico, Hungary, Pakistan, Indonesia and Malaysia.

The WHO announcement comes just a week after the Biden administration gave official licenses to 11 Covid-19 research tools and early-stage vaccine candidates in coordination with a UN-backed program called the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) and the WHO’s Technology Access Pool (C-TAP).