The World Health Organisation (WHO) yesterday approved the Covovax vaccine for Emergency Use Listing (EUL), elevating to nine the number of immunisations approved to fight the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic
Covovax is a subunit of the vaccine developed by Novavax and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI). It requires two doses and is stable at 2 to 8 °C refrigerated temperature
The vaccine is produced by the Serum Institute of India, under licence from Novavax, and will now be part of the COVAX facility portfolio, boosting efforts to vaccinate more people in lower-income countries
According to WHO, the procedure to qualify for emergency use assesses the quality, safety and efficacy of the vaccines. The approval also allows countries to expedite their own regulatory process
This week, a meeting of WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation (SAGE) also reviewed the vaccine.
