ANKARA, Dec 24 (Reuters) – A COVID-19 vaccine developed by China’s Sinovac Biotech is 91.25% effective and the rate is likely to rise according to data from the final phase, Turkish researchers said on Thursday. as the country becomes the second rehearsal site to produce results for the Chinese candidate.
The researchers, who are part of the government’s scientific council, said no significant symptoms were detected during the CoronaVac trials in Turkey, apart from one person who had an allergic reaction.
Turkey had agreed to acquire 50 million doses of CoronaVac from Sinovac on December 11, but shipment had been delayed. Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said the vaccines would arrive in Turkey on Monday, adding that Turkey would vaccinate about 9 million people in the first group, starting with health workers. (Report by Tuvan Gumrukcu and Ali Kucukgocmen; edited by Alex Richardson)