Indonesia Approves Sinovac Covid-19 Vaccine for Emergency Use in Children Aged 6 to 11

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Indonesia’s Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) has approved China’s Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use in children ages 6 to 11, an official said on Monday, November 1.

Agency head Penny Lukito said the authorization was based on the evaluation of phase 2 clinical trials that the immunogenicity of the Sinovac vaccine reached 96.5 percent.
She also hoped that other Covid-19 vaccines would follow suit.

“We are waiting for more coronavirus vaccines will be registered with the BPOM, making the vaccines available to children aged 6 to 11,” Penny told a virtual press conference.

Also read: Indonesia to Start Vaccinating Children With the Covid-19 Vaccine

“The results of the clinical trials of children are safer in terms of safety and immunogenicity, which shows a fairly high percentage of 96.5 percent,” she added.

With this progress, Penny expressed her gratitude for the cooperation of the drug assessment team comprising the Indonesia Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ITAGI) and the National Commission for Drug Assessment in conducting an assessment of the Sinovac vaccine for children.

“We appreciate the collaboration done by the drug assessment team,” she said.

Previously, Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo has set a target of vaccinating 70 percent of the population by the end of 2021 to stem the spread of Covid-19. All 34 provinces are also expected to achieve the same target.

The media reported that as of September, Indonesia received about 217 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine. Of this number, more than 181 million doses are from Sinovac.

(Writer: Haryanti Puspa Sari | Editor: Icha Rastika)

Source: https://nasional.kompas.com/read/2021/11/01/15522441/sinovac-jadi-vaksin-pertama-yang-terdaftar-untuk-anak-6-11-tahun-bpom.