According to the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation, a batch of Sinovac vaccines is set to reach Malaysian shores by February 27.
The Coordinating Minister for Covid-19 Immunisation, Khairy Jamaluddin said that the vaccines will be delivered in bulk for fill and finish by Pharmaniaga and the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency (NPRA) is currently reviewing Sinovac’s regulatory submission.
The Beijing-based biopharmaceutical company Sinovac is behind CoronaVac, an inactivated vaccine.
“By comparison, Pfizer vaccines being developed in the West are mRNA vaccines. This means part of the coronavirus’ genetic code is injected into the body, triggering the body to begin making viral proteins, but not the whole virus, which is enough to train the immune system to attack,” Nanyang Technological University, Associate Professor Luo Dahai said.
In a recent announcement, the Pfizer vaccine will be in the country by February 21 and Malaysia’s Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin will be the first Malaysian to be vaccinated on February 26 under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme.
