Sputnik V vaccine authorized for use in Pakistan

Sputnik V vaccine authorized for use in Pakistan

Moscow, February 9, 2021 – The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF, Russia’s sovereign wealth fund) announces the Sputnik V vaccine against coronavirus has been approved by Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP).

Pakistan has become the 22^nd country in the world to approve Sputnik V. The vaccine was approved under the emergency use authorization procedure based on the results of the clinical trials of Sputnik V in Russia.

To date Sputnik V has been registered in Russia, Belarus, Argentina, Bolivia, Serbia, Algeria, Palestine, Venezuela, Paraguay, Turkmenistan, Hungary, UAE, Iran, Republic of Guinea, Tunisia, Armenia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Republika Srpska (entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina), Lebanon and Myanmar.

Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, said:

“Pakistan is one of the most populated countries in the world, and the decision to include Sputnik V in the national vaccine portfolio is an important step to diversify it and protect people’s health. Emergency use authorization of Sputnik V has become possible thanks to its high efficacy, safety and a well-researched platform of human adenoviral vectors.”

Sputnik V has a number of key advantages:

·        Efficacy of Sputnik V is 91.6% as confirmed by the data published in the Lancet, one of the world's oldest and most respected medical journals; it is one of only three vaccines in the world with efficacy of over 90%; Sputnik V provides full protection against severe cases of COVID-19.

·        The Sputnik V vaccine is based on a proven and well-studied platform of human adenoviral vectors, which cause the common cold and have been around for thousands of years.

·        Sputnik V uses two different vectors for the two shots in a course of vaccination, providing immunity with a longer duration than vaccines using the same delivery mechanism for both shots.

·        The safety, efficacy and lack of negative long-term effects of adenoviral vaccines have been proven by more than 250 clinical studies over two decades.

·        The developers of the Sputnik V vaccine are working collaboratively with AstraZeneca on a joint clinical trial to improve the efficacy of AstraZeneca vaccine.

·        There are no strong allergies caused by Sputnik V.