THIS refers to the news item ‘120,000 doses of PakVac ready for use’ (June 2) about the inauguration of an antisera processing laboratory to prepare three million doses per month of PakVac from CanSino vaccine concentrate provided by China.

This is a single-dose vaccine, which means that three million people will be fully inoculated every month. The World Health Organisation (WHO) validated Sinovac vaccine for ‘emergency use’, but validation from the WHO for PakVac is still awaited.

Another issue the people face is those who were vaccinated two doses of Sinopharm vaccine are not getting entry visa for Saudi Arabia, European countries, the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, etc. Therefore, efforts should be made to get validation from these countries for PakVac, so that people planning to visit these countries are not denied entry visa on the basis of a Pakistani vaccine.

Shakil Ahmed Bokhari
Karachi

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OVER the last few months, a number of coronovirus vaccines have been introduced. Some more are also in the pipeline, and now we have Pakistan’s PakVac.

As regards the efficacy of these vaccines, opinions vary from country to country to the extent that some countries are not allowing entry to those who have got a dose of a particular vaccine.

For example, the Saudi government does not allow visas to people who have got Chinese Sinopharm. Similarly, some other countries are doing the same.

Where should we go from here on? The entire exercise may end up in total confusion and frustration, especially for those who have already got a jab.

There is, therefore, a dire need for standardisation of these vaccines by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Politics and business interests should not play any part in these life-saving vaccines.

Cdre (r) Sajjad Ali Shah Bokhari
Islamabad

Published in Dawn, June 8th, 2021