Chinese company Sinopharm sent one million doses of its Vero Cell vaccine to Almaty. The first bunch of the vaccine has come today on August 10; the second part of the shipment is expected to come tomorrow.
The total weight of the medical shipment is about 20 tons. It’s carried in specially designed thermal containers, which can keep a certain temperature from 2 to 8 degrees Celsius for 72 hours.
In June, Kazakhstan’s Minister of Health Alexey Tsoy told that the agency negotiated with China about a new deal with the vaccine but he didn’t identify the producer.
Previously Kazakhstan already purchased vaccines from Sinopharm. It was a Hayat-Vax vaccine designed and produced by the Chinese in conjunction with the UAE.
In June the country bought 500,000 doses of CoronaVac from Chinese company Sinovac Biotech Ltd. Two shots of this vaccine were received by 250,000 Kazakhstanis.
Vero Cell vaccine (or Sinopharm) was approved for utilization by the World Health Organization on May 7 this year. The vaccine’s ability to stay stable without strict requirements for storing makes it very convenient for transportation. Moreover, the vaccine bottles have some sort of monitor that changes color if the temperature goes higher. So the medical workers can be sure that the vaccine is safe for utilization.
According to WHO the Vero Cell vaccine can be used for adults above 18 years old. The vaccine should be taken in two doses with an interval of 3-4 weeks. The efficacy of the vaccine against severe illness and hospitalization is 79%.
