A first country, Indonesia, has authorized Novavax's vaccine against Covid-19, the American company announced on Monday.
It will be produced by the Serum Institute of India (SII) and marketed under the name Covovax.
This vaccine uses a different technology from that used for vaccines already widely authorized in the world.
It is a so
-
called "
subunit
" vaccine
, based on proteins that trigger an immune response, without viruses.
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It can be stored at a temperature between 2 and 8 ° C, which may facilitate its distribution, especially in less developed countries.
“
This first clearance of Novavax's Covid-19 vaccine illustrates our commitment to equitable global access, and will fill a vital need for Indonesia, which despite being the world's fourth most populous nation, continues to work to provide enough vaccines to its people,
”Stanley Erck, the company's CEO, said in a statement.
The first deliveries must begin "
immediately
", the statement added.
Authorization requests pending in several countries
Novavax also announced Monday that it had filed an application for authorization with the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and in Canada.
Applications are also being studied in the United Kingdom, Australia, and another has also been filed with the World Health Organization (WHO).
Novavax also specified Monday to plan to file an application in the United States "
by the end of the year
".
In June, the company presented the results of clinical trials on some 30,000 people in the United States and Mexico, which showed an efficacy of 90.4% against the disease, and 100% against severe to moderate cases. .
Indonesia has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Jakarta had imposed strict restrictions in the worst-affected areas, shutting down non-essential businesses and drastically restricting travel.
The situation has since improved, and the country has stepped up its vaccination campaign.
But the task remains enormous in the archipelago of more than 270 million inhabitants.
