BEIJING, June 8 (NNN-XINHUA) – China will make its COVID-19 vaccine a global public good, when it is ready for application, after successful research and clinical trials, a senior Chinese official said, Sunday.
Wang Zhigang, minister of science and technology, said in Beijing that, international cooperation should be strengthened in vaccine development, clinical trials and application.
Vaccine development should focus on ensuring safety, effectiveness, and accessibility, Wang said.
China is currently developing COVID-19 vaccines in five categories — inactivated vaccines, recombinant protein vaccines, live attenuated influenza vaccines, adenovirus vaccines, and nucleic acid-based vaccines, Wang noted.
To date, four inactivated vaccines and one adenovirus vaccine have been approved for clinical trials, said a white paper titled: “Fighting COVID-19: China in Action,” which was released by the State Council Information Office on Sunday.
While scientists in China and abroad have kept up with mutual developments, China leads the world in the development of certain types of vaccines, the white paper said.
A great deal of international cooperation had been carried out so far, on vaccine development, Wang said.
Highlighting the significant role vaccines played in human history, Wang said, both Chinese scientists and in other countries, are trying to make contributions to building a global community of health for all.
He however noted that the development of vaccines is a rigorous and complex procedure, which faces many uncertainties and may take a long period of time.
Vice Foreign Minister, Ma Zhaoxu, said, China participated in an international collaboration initiative, launched by the World Health Organisation to accelerate the development of vaccines and medicines.
China will fulfil its promise to the world with a safe, effective, and high-quality vaccine, when it is ready, and help make the vaccine accessible to and affordable for developing countries, Ma stressed.
