As the clinical trials of the inactive COVID-19 vaccine enter Phase III in the UAE, Abu Dhabi Media Office recently announced that the Ministry of Health and Community Protection and the Department of Health-Abu Dhabi (DoH) are coordinating to open registration for volunteers across all emirates in a bid to support the efforts to tackle the pandemic.

Significantly, the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (SEHA) announced the registration of 5,000 volunteers, both male and female, for the Phase-III clinical trials of the vaccine within the first 24 hours of launching the registration website for the voluntary campaign.

The UAE authorities launched its first specialized website - http://4humanity.ae - for the registration of volunteers for the clinical trials of the vaccine, which has been enlisted by the World Health Organization (WHO). Along with this, a special emergency 24/7 hotline (02 819 1111) has also been initiated for managing the volunteers of the clinical trials and it will be operated by SEHA officials. Residents and Emirati citizens willing to participate in the trials must be aged between 18 and 60 who will be considered eligible after conducting necessary medical check-ups.  

Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed Al Hamid, Chairman of the Department of Health in Abu Dhabi, was the first person in the world to receive the Phase III inactive vaccine for COVID-19, after he volunteered to take the first dose. This study has been successful due to the collaboration and cooperation between Abu Dhabi-based G42 Healthcare and China's Sinopharm CNBG which is the sixth-largest producer of vaccines in the world. G42 Healthcare has been at the forefront of the UAE's efforts to combat the spread of Coronavirus disease. 

The trials are being conducted under the close supervision of health practitioners from Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (SEHA) along with the help of the Abu Dhabi Health Department. They are coordinating the experiments across five facilities in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain as well as a mobile clinic in a bid to ensure easy access to the facilities to the volunteers participating in the programme.

 The UAE was selected as the preferred location for conducting the Phase III trials of the vaccine keeping in mind the demographic diversity of various nationalities in the country. It will facilitate detailed research and feasibility for the global application of the vaccine once the trials are successful. If the vaccine trials attain success, it will enter the large-scale manufacturing stage.