In an update about the UAE’s Phase III trials of an inactivated vaccine for coronavirus, health officials announced that the first recipients will be frontline health workers.
The 4Humanity trials, developed by Sinopharm CNBG, are being managed by Abu-Dhabi based G42 Healthcare in partnership with the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHaP) and Abu Dhabi Health Services Company.
The results of the first and second test phases showed that the vaccine was safe, effective and triggered the right response, officials added at a press conference on Monday evening.
They said the vaccine has been tested on 1,000 volunteers suffering from chronic diseases, and no complications have been reported.
The UAE recently reported its highest number of coronavirus cases in a 24-hour period when new infections exceeded 1,000 for the first time.
The UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention said a total of 1,007 cases had been recorded after it conducted 95,287 tests in the same period.
Until last month, daily cases had been falling in the UAE since a previous peak of 994 cases in May, but numbers have jumped significantly from 164 cases on August 3.
Recently, Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) closed four establishments, suspended the permits of 14 others and issued final warnings to 19 more companies for non-compliance with coronavirus precautionary measures.
Dubai Tourism said its inspectors have adopted a zero-tolerance approach in the implementation and management of health and safety protocols.
Dubai has also launched initiatives such as the Dubai Assured stamp which certifies hotels, retail establishments and attractions that have complied with all health and safety protocols.
Source: Arabian Business