The World Health Organization (WHO) has granted emergency approval for the Covid vaccine made by Chinese company Sinopharm.
It is the first vaccine developed by a non-Western country to get WHO backing.
The vaccine has already been given to millions of people in China and elsewhere.
The WHO had previously only approved the vaccines made by Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Moderna.
But individual health regulators in various countries – especially poorer ones in Africa, Latin America and Asia – have approved Chinese jabs for emergency use.
With little data released internationally early on, the effectiveness of the various Chinese vaccines has long been uncertain.
But the WHO on Friday said it had validated the “safety, efficacy and quality” of the Sinopharm jab.
The WHO said the addition of the vaccine had “the potential to rapidly accelerate Covid-19 vaccine access for countries seeking to protect health workers and populations at risk”.
It is recommending that the vaccine be administered in two doses to those aged 18 and over.
A decision is expected within days on another Chinese vaccine developed by Sinovac, while Russia’s Sputnik vaccine is under assessment.
Why does WHO backing matter?
The green light from the global health body is a guideline for national regulators that a vaccine is safe and effective.
WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said it would give countries “confidence to expedite their own regulatory approval”.
It also means that the vaccine can be used in the global Covax programme, which aims to provide about two billion vaccines to developing countries.
The decision to list the Chinese vaccine for emergency use is expected to give a substantial boost to the scheme, which has been hit by supply problems and only been able to deliver about 50 million doses so far.
Prior to the WHO approval, the Sinopharm vaccine was already being widely used, with an estimated 65 million doses administered, according to reports.
In addition to China, countries using the vaccine include the UAE, Pakistan and Hungary.
The vaccine’s developer, Beijing Biological Products Institute, has not released any detailed data about its efficacy, but has said the jab is 79.34% effective in preventing people from developing the disease, based on interim data, according to Reuters news agency
The decision to approve the vaccine for emergency use was made by the WHO’s technical advisory group, which reviewed its latest clinical data and manufacturing practices.
Doses of another Chinese vaccine made by Sinovac have also already been shipped to a number of countries, which have permitted its emergency usage.
How do the Chinese shots work?
The two Chinese vaccines differ significantly from some of the other Covid vaccines currently in use, especially those by Pfizer and Moderna.
Developed in a more traditional way, they are so-called inactivated vaccines, which means they use killed viral particles to expose the immune system to the virus without risking a serious disease response.
By comparison, the BioNtech/Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are mRNA vaccines. This means part of the coronavirus’ genetic code is injected into the body, training the immune system how to respond to it.
The UK’s AstraZeneca vaccine is yet another type of vaccine where a version of a common cold virus from chimpanzees is modified to contain genetic material shared by the coronavirus. Once injected, it teaches the immune system how to fight the real virus.
BioNTech/Pfizer and Moderna have an efficacy rate of around 90% or higher, while the AstraZeneca jab is thought to be around 76%.
In April, China’s top disease control official said the efficacy of the country’s Covid vaccines was low, although he later insisted his comments had been misinterpreted.
