Indonesia declares Sinovac’s Covid vaccine halal

Reuters: A COVID-19 vaccine produced by Sinovac Biotech is deemed halal, or permissible under Islam, Indonesia’s Ulema Council said on Friday, days before the country is scheduled to start its inoculation programme using the Chinese vaccine.
Asrorun Niam Sholeh of the council’s fatwa commission told a news conference that the vaccine, named CoronaVac, is “holy and halal”, although authorisation still rests on the Indonesia’s food and drug agency. Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority country, has received 3 million doses of CoronaVac.
A vaccine made by Sinovac Biotech has been found to be 78 per cent effective against Covid-19 in late-stage trials in Brazil, making it the second Chinese vaccine that has passed minimum efficacy requirements by most regulators.
The announcement made by the Sao Paulo state government paves the way for the emergency use approvals and imminent roll-out of the Sinovac vaccine, CoronaVac, in an array of countries and regions, including Hong Kong, that have already placed orders. CoronaVac was found to be 78 per cent effective in preventing mild cases of Covid-19 and 100 per cent effective against severe and moderate infections, according to a statement posted by the Sao Paulo government.