KARACHI: Pakistan has allowed the emergency use of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and a Swedish multinational pharma company Astrazeneca, said the prime minister’s adviser on health, Dr. Faisal Sultan, while talking to Arab News on Saturday.
“The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan [DRAP] has authorized the emergency use of Astrazeneca's AZD1222 to deal with COVID-19 in Pakistan,” the country’s health chief informed.
The vaccine has also been approved by the British Medicine and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority and is said to be effective for people of all ages.
Unlike the coronavirus vaccines prepared by some US companies, it can be easily stored in ordinary refrigerators.
According to media reports, a Karachi-based pharmaceutical company, which has applied for registration with DRAP, will import the vaccine for the private sector, though its prices will be fixed by the government.
