ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will take part in stage 3 trials of a Chinese coronavirus vaccine this month, Planning Minister Asad Umar said on Saturday.
In phase 3 trials, scientists give the vaccine to thousands of people to determine if it protects against COVID-19. Such trials are large enough to reveal side effects that might be missed in earlier studies.
“Pakistan will be participating in phase 3 trials of a Chinese developed vaccine for coronavirus. The trials in Pakistan will inshallah start in about 10 days,” the minister said in a Twitter post.
Pakistan has witnessed a significant decrease in COVID-19 cases and fatalities in recent weeks, which prompted the government to announce that educational institutions would reopen from Sept. 15.
On Saturday, the country reported three coronavirus-related deaths. Since the first cases were reported in March, the country of 220 million people has recorded 300,955 infections and 6,373 deaths.
