Chinese nationals residing in Sri Lanka will be prioritized when vaccinating with the China-made COVID-19 vaccine ‘Sinopharm’, stated State Minister of Primary Health Care, Epidemics and COVID-19 Disease Control Dr. Sudarshini Fernandopulle. She said that as per a request by the Embassy of China in Sri Lanka, the Sinopharm vaccine will first be administered to Chinese nationals in the island. Even in our country, permission has been given only to accept the donation [of Sinopharm vaccine] as of yet. Since the Sinopharm vaccine is used in China, the Chinese people living here will be able to get the vaccine as well.”Sri Lanka’s National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) on Saturday approved the China-produced Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use in the island country. This is the third COVID-19 vaccine to be approved in the country after the AstraZeneca and Russia’s Sputnik V vaccines.

Source: The Nation March 21, 2021 15:01 UTC