UAE prime minister takes shot of COVID-19 vaccine developed by China

Dubai Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum on Tuesday received a dose of a vaccine for COVID-10 developed by a Chinese pharmaceutical firm.

Al Maktoum joined the list of top ministers and officials who have taken a shot of the vaccine developed by Sinopharm, a pharmaceutical giant owned by China, Al Jazeera reported.

Foreign minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and deputy prime minister Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al-Nahyan have already taken the vaccine.

Dubai Prime Minister Al Maktoum shared the news on Twitter along with a photo.

“While receiving the Covid-19 vaccine today. We wish everyone safety and great health, and we are proud of our teams who have worked relentlessly to make the vaccine available in the UAE. The future will always be better in the UAE,” he wrote in his post.

On Tuesday, Bahrain granted emergency approval for the use of the Chinese vaccine candidate on frontline workers.

In September, Bahrain crown prince Salman had taken part in third phase trials of the Sinopharm vaccine.

Also read: Russia temporarily stops COVID vaccine trial; Brazil expects it by June 2021

Last month, UAE authorised the use of the vaccine for health workers.

G42 Healthcare CEO Ashish Koshy last month said the vaccine had been administered to more than 31,000 people across those countries.

Last month, the UAE had approved clinical trials of Russia’s Sputnik V, becoming the first Middle East country to do so.

The UAE has so far reported 1,36,149 confirmed cases of coronavirus as well as 503 deaths.