Two flights, chartered by SriLankan Airlines, have departed to China to bring 2 million doses of Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccines, says State Minister of Production, Supply and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals Prof. Channa Jayasumana. This is reportedly the largest consignment of coronavirus vaccines Sri Lanka will be receiving on a single day. This enabled the extension of national inoculation drive to 12 more districts apart from Colombo, and the administration of Sinopharm vaccine’s second dose. Sri Lanka has received a total of 5.1 million Sinopharm vaccines so far since the arrival of the first batch of 600,000 doses in late March this year. Sinopharm coronavirus vaccine, also known as BBIBP-CorV, is produced by China National Biotec Group (CNBG) – a subsidiary of China National Pharmaceutical Group Corporation (SINOPHARM).

Source: The Nation July 10, 2021 11:03 UTC