Pascal Arogorn Ibe
The World Health Organisation on Thursday granted emergency validation to the Pfizer- BioNTech vaccine, paving the way for countries worldwide to quickly approve its import and distribution .
The decision “ makes the Pfizer /BioNTech vaccine the first to receive emergency validation from WHO since the ( novel coronavirus ) outbreak began a year ago , ” WHO said in a statement .
The WHO’ s Emergency Use Listing opens the door for countries to expedite their own regulatory approval processes to import and administer the vaccine. It also enables UNICEF and the Pan- American Health Organisation to procure the vaccine for distribution to countries in need, the global health body said .
The statement quoted WHO Assistant -Director General for Access to Medicines and Health Products, Dr Mariângela Simão , as saying , “ This is a very positive step towards ensuring global access to COVID – 19 vaccines. But I want to emphasize the need for an even greater global effort to achieve enough vaccine supply to meet the needs of priority populations everywhere.
“ WHO and our partners are working night and day to evaluate other vaccines that have reached safety and efficacy standards . We encourage even more developers to come forward for review and assessment. It ’ s vitally important that we secure the critical supply needed to serve all countries around the world and stem the pandemic. ”
Regulatory experts convened by WHO from around the world and WHO’ s own teams reviewed the data on the Pfizer /BioNTech vaccine ’ s safety, efficacy and quality as part of a risk-versus- benefit analysis .
“ The review found that the vaccine met the must- have criteria for safety and efficacy set out by WHO, and that the benefits of using the vaccine to address COVID – 19 offset potential risks, ” WHO added .
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