Decision on Chinese vaccine's trial runs in Bangladesh next week
The Ministry of Health insurance and Family Welfare will talk with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Covid-19 vaccine purchases next week. The meeting may also decide whether China-based Sinovac will be allowed to conduct trial runs of their shots in Bangladesh, said Health Minister Zahid Maleque on Wednesday.
Meantime, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal at the Cabinet Committee Meeting on Government Purchase promised medical minister about vaccine financing on demand.
Kamal, who presided over the meeting, informed the press that he told the health minister never to bank on any single source for the vaccine supply.
To acquire Covid-19 vaccine when the world invents one, many countries have previously signed deals beforehand with the Oxford University and US based biotech company Moderna -two promising researchers on coronavirus shots.
Currently 200 organizations and research firms will work globally on Covid-19 vaccine development and industrial-scale production. Of these, Oxford University of London, Chinese Sinovac, US Moderna and Australia's Murdoch Children's Research Institute have begun human trials.
Total six vaccines are actually at level-3 trail while Russia approved its vaccine last Tuesday.
Many countries are signing agreements with the biotech companies and paying beforehand so that they are able to get the shots if the vaccines succeed. However, Bangladesh is yet to strike such any vaccine deal.
At the Cabinet Committee Meeting on Government Purchase Wednesday, Health Minister Zahid Maleque said the meeting with the premier would also decide whether China will be approved to conduct vaccine trials in Bangladesh. The meeting will choose advance payment too.
If the meeting's participants give Chinese trials the go-ahead, then Bangladesh will discuss the size of the trial population, other conditions and just how much China will pay Bangladesh for the trial, said the minister.
Medical minister said the World Health Organization (WHO) is also continuing discussions with biotech companies in order that three percent of folks worldwide, who are more susceptible to the virus, could be given the vaccine. The organisation aims at raising the quantity of vaccine recipients to 20 percent globally by next March 20.
At the meeting Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal said, "An Indian company has signed a deal for the Oxford vaccine. If we can not reach Oxford directly, we are able to get a contract at least with the Indian company."
"We must make an effort to get it as Russia has recently approved its vaccine," he added.
While bidding farewell to a Dhaka-visiting Chinese team at Dhaka airport in last June, Zahid Maleque told the press that Bangladesh would get priority with regards to cooperation and support if China can successfully develop coronavirus vaccine.
Sinovac was to conduct its clinical trials of Covid-19 vaccine at the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) in the first week of August. The Bangladesh Medical research Council also approved the trial.
Later, the trial saw complexity as medical minister said decision between your two states usually takes a while. Health ministry officials said they were yet to receive the official proposal from China for the trials.
Against such backdrop, Bangladesh switched to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (Gavi) which would buy 2 billion doses of finally approved Covid-19 shots.
"This implies 4 crore people in Bangladesh are certain to get Covid-19 shots as Gavi would provide 20-23 percent world population with the dozes," said Shamsul Alam, director of medical directorate's maternal nutrition and child healthcare programme.
He said, "We've sent the expression of interest to the Gavi on July 9. There will a number of meeting until September whether Bangladesh would get the doses cost free."
