Maldives has started administering the first dose of Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine, following the approval from Maldives Food and Drug Authority (MFDA).
The Sinopharm vaccine is manufactured by China's state-owned pharmaceutical company Sinopharm. The vaccine has been authorised for emergency use by World Health Organisation (WHO), and is being administered in multiple countries around the world.
The Sinopharm vaccine was approved by MFDA to be administered to people above 18 years and is currently administered only in the Greater Male' Region. The Sinopharm vaccine is utilised for the second round of inoculation.
Health Protection Agency (HPA) said the first dose of Sinopharm vaccine was administered to over 1,500 on the first day. HPA revealed altogether over 1,800 people were vaccinated in the past 24 hours. This includes 1,597 people who were administered the Sinopharm vaccine in the Greater Male' Region and 259 people who were vaccinated from the atolls.
With the latest figures, a total of 220,768 people have been given the first dose of the vaccine, which includes 123,227 people from the Greater Male' Region and 97,548 people from the atolls.
Maldives has been vaccinating its population against the pandemic since February 1. Authorities have allowed the administering of the second dose of the vaccine under special circumstances.