Illustrative image (Photo: voi.id) Hanoi (VNA) – Indonesia has approved its firstlocally developed COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, head of national food anddrug agency Penny Lukito said onSeptember 30, hailing it as a step toward “the nation’s independence in accessto medicine”.
The IndoVac jab, developed bystate-owned pharmaceutical company Bio Farma and Texas-based Baylor College ofMedicine, can now be used as a primary dose for an unvaccinated or partiallyvaccinated adult in the country.
It has also beengranted a halal certificate, meaning it can be administered in line with theIslamic faith in Muslim-majority Indonesia.
Lukito said IndoVachas shown an efficacy rate of 92%, while there have been no reports of deathlinked to it in trials. Reported side effects have been “generally mild”.
A clinical study touse it as a booster jab is underway, she said.
The same day, the agency also announcedIndonesia has granted emergency use approval for an mRNA vaccine developed inChina./.
