New Delhi: Bahrain became the second nation in the world to allow use of vaccines made by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech.
The kingdom of Bahrain on Friday said that “The confirmation of approval by the National Health Regulatory Authority of the kingdom of Bahrain followed thorough analysis and review undertaken by the authority of all available data.”
Bahrain media on Friday reported that Britain became the first nation in the world to allow the emergency use of the coronavirus vaccine made by company Pfizer and its partner BioNTech and now Bahrain became the second nation in the world to allow the use of this vaccine.
To the media – Bahrain said nothing about the purchase of vaccines and when vaccinations would begin.
Pfizer later told the media that the details of its sales agreement with Bahrain including the ‘timing of delivery and the volume of doses’ was confidential.
“We have developed detailed logistical plans and tools to support effective vaccine transport, storage and continuous temperature monitoring and our distribution is built on a flexible just in time system which will ship the frozen vials to the point of vaccination,” Pfizer in its statement.
Bahrain has to face the most dangerous challenge in transportation because vaccines must be stored and shipped at ultra-cold temperatures of around minus 70 degrees Celsius and Bahrain is a Middle-east nation where generally temperature remains around 40 C in the summer.
Bahrain may use its own Gulf Air carrier to transport the vaccine. In the nearby United Arab Emirates, the Dubai-based long-haul carrier Emirates has already said it is preparing its facilities to distribute vaccines at ultra-cold temperatures.
Bahrain had already granted emergency-use authorization for a Chinese vaccine made by Sinopharm and has inoculated some 6,000 people with it. That vaccine, an “inactivated” shot made by growing the whole virus in a lab and then killing it, also is in use in the UAE. Pfizer’s vaccine does not contain the coronavirus itself.
The CEO of Bahrain’s National Health Regulatory Authority – Dr. Mariam al-Jalahma said that “The approval of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine will add a further important layer to the kingdom’s national COVID-19 response, which has strongly prioritized protecting the health of all citizens and residents during the pandemic.”
BioNTech, which owns the vaccine, said it has so far signed deals to supply 570 million doses worldwide in 2021, with options to deliver 600 million more. It hopes to supply at least 1.3 billion in 2021.
The Bahrain government has reported 87000 cases so far and claimed 341 deaths. More than 85,000 people have recovered from the COVID-19 illness that is caused by the virus. The Bahraini government says it has conducted over 2 million coronavirus tests across the island. It initially blamed its higher per-capita infection rate on that.
_Vinayak
