Egypt to test Chinese-made coronavirus vaccines on 6,000 unpaid volunteers
Egypt to test Chinese-made coronavirus vaccines on 6,000 unpaid volunteers
A clinical trial will test two kinds of Chinese-made vaccines on participants in Egypt, who will not know what they were injected with or receive payment.
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Participants will receive a total of two injections, 21 days apart [Getty]
Egypt is calling for 6,000 volunteers to participate in clinical trials for two Chinese-made Covid-19 vaccines, the Health ministry announced.
In a statement published by the State Information System on Sunday, Health Minister Hala Zayed said the trials will be in the third phase.
The third phase will test the safety of the administered vaccine, its appropriate dosage, and whether it provides immunity, Zayed said.
Trials for two potential Covid-19 vaccines, made by a "leading" Chinese pharmaceutical manufacturer that the official did not name, will be carried out in cooperation with the Chinese government and UAE technology G42 Company.
According to the statement, the trials have already been carried out in three other Arab countries: Bahrain, Jordan and the UAE.
The total target of tests for the experimentation is 45,000 respondents worldwide, while trials on 35,000 participants had already been conducted.
The official said volunteers in Egypt would not be compensated for their participation.
Volunteers will either be injected with one of the two vaccines or receive a placebo solution, Zayed explained in a local TV interview, adding that participants will not be informed on which vaccine they receive.
Participants will receive a total of two injections, 21 days apart, and will be monitored throughout the year, she said.
Read also: Saudi Arabia to conduct third phase of clinical trial for Chinese coronavirus vaccine
In July, Egypt was selected by China as a future African hub which gets "priority access" to a coronavirus vaccine if one is developed by Beijing, after the Egyptian health ministry officials met with China's Ambassador Liao Liqiang.
The north African country has recorded a total of 101,000 coronavirus cases with 5,627 deaths resulting from infection.
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