In a significant development, over 5000 volunteers have received the first doses of vaccination in Phase III clinical trials for an inactivated vaccine for COVID-19 in the UAE.

The 5000th vaccination was given in the presence of Dr Jamal Al Kaabi, the Acting Under-Secretary of the Department of Health, Abu Dhabi. Dr Al Kaabi was the second participant in the clinical trials programme as he received his second vaccination shot earlier this week.

The vaccinations were provided to the volunteers at the recently developed purpose-built walk-in registration, screening and testing centre at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, ADNEC.

UAE health authorities initiated the Phase III trials of an inactivated COVID-19 vaccine in Abu Dhabi on July 15. Facilitated by G42 Healthcare, the trials are being conducted in partnership with the Department of Health - Abu Dhabi, the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP), and Abu Dhabi Health Services Company - SEHA. China-based Sinopharm CNBG has been developing the inactivated vaccine. The company is the sixth-largest vaccine manufacturer in the world.

Taking inspiration from the UAE leadership's goal and commitment to overcome the pandemic through global collaborative efforts, more than 80 nationalities in the community showed their interests towards participating in the programme, expressing support to the national battle against the crisis.

The ADNEC facility has the potential to accommodate at least 1000 volunteers in a day. To allow maximum participation of the volunteers, the facility is open from 8 am to 8 pm every day. Reportedly, a second walk-in centre has now become operational at the Al Qarain Health Centre in Sharjah which can manage a daily capacity of at least 500 volunteers.

Responding to the mammoth success of the clinical trials so far, Dr Nawal Ahmed Alkaabi, UAE Principal Investigator, Sheikh Khalifa Medical City CMO and Chairperson of the National COVID-19 Clinical Management Committee, said that this is a significant achievement for the ongoing clinical trials, adding that such an impressive number of participants to the programme is a testament to the global commitment to humanity of everyone who calls the UAE home.

"We reached the 5000 vaccinations faster than anticipated and believe that our trials of the inactivated vaccine are moving faster than comparable trials processes anywhere in the world thanks to the winning combination of a national spirit of volunteerism and the strength of the UAE’s healthcare system," Dr Alkaabi said.

Dr Alkaabi went on to thank all volunteers and clinical and administrative staff who have worked tirelessly to ensure the success of the programme and to make the team confident of reaching their goal of 15,000 vaccinated volunteers in the weeks ahead.

In addition, G42 Healthcare CEO Ashish Koshy stated that they are proud to have achieved this milestone in Phase III clinical trials process so quickly. Thanking every volunteer for their participation, he further said that there has been incredible interest from people across the nation to get involved and support everyone working to make these trials a success.

Ashish Koshy also encouraged the UAE residents to continue with their participation and usage of the readily accessible centres in Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. The process of registration, screening and vaccination protocols have been streamlined due to the continuous hard work and coordination of the medical teams, laboratory team, 4Humanity staff, and the UAE government organisations who have been making all efforts to mobilize and ensure the efficient running of the trials.

All the volunteers who have been vaccinated so far belong to the age group between 18 to 60 and represent the whole range of nationalities and backgrounds in the UAE.

One of the participants who is a student studying in Abu Dhabi said, "I am very proud to be taking part in the clinical trials and the medical staff have been very clear and very helpful in explaining the whole process. I am very optimistic that the clinical trials will be successful and for the UAE and for humanity we will have a very successful vaccine against COVID-19."

Another participant, who is an expatriate, spoke about his experience, saying: “I have been in the UAE for four years and the country has given me a lot and the best way I could give something back was to offer myself for the vaccine trials. Everybody needs us and I am stepping forward to volunteer as this is the what the country needs."

The clinical trials are a part of a range of national initiatives launched by the UAE leadership to boost the health and safety of the community and strengthen the country's medical research and development capabilities which will include the enhancing the local capacity to manufacture the vaccine.

During the Phase III trials being carried out at the UAE, the authorities have ensured to follow all international guidelines stipulated by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA).

The ongoing Phase III clinical trials have been initiated after the success of Phase I and Phase II trials which were conducted by Sinopharm in China. Phase I and Phase II trials achieved successful results with 100 per cent of the volunteers generating antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) only after two doses in 28 days. The Phase III trials will last for six to twelve months and will require the volunteers to be available only for follow-ups during this time.

WAM