China approves inactivated Covid jabs for kids

BEIJING: China on Friday announced the approval of inactivated Covid-19 vaccines for emergency use in children aged between 3 and 17.

The announcement was made by the country’s National Health Commission, Chinese public broadcaster CGTN reported on Friday.

Until now, China has approved three vaccines, including Sinovac and Sinopharm which have also been approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO). The third one is an inactivated vaccine for use in adults age 18 and older in a two-dose schedule two to four weeks apart.

China has exported and donated its vaccines to more than 66 countries and international organisations across the globe. Approval of one more vaccine by China allows more vaccines to be shipped across the globe as the Covid-19 pandemic still rages on.

China has reported more than 100 new local coronavirus cases in June so far. Most of the new cases were found among elders and minors, according to the China’s health officials.

The National Health Commission said in a statement that mainland China reported 22 new cases of confirmed infections, including 13 imported cases, taking national tally to 91,359 cases and 4,636 deaths since the outbreak of the COVID-19 infections in December 2019.