Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccines contribute to inoculation campaign in Nepal

Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccines are contributing to the vaccination campaign in Nepal, show data released by the Nepali Ministry of Health and Population.

A woman receives a dose of COVID-19 vaccine in Kathmandu, Nepal, June 8, 2021. (Xinhua/Sulav Shrestha)

By Tuesday, 3.46 million Nepalis had received first doses of vaccines, while 1.45 million had been administered fully, according to the ministry.

It said that more than 1.63 million Nepalis had been administered the first shots of the Vero Cell vaccine developed by China's Sinopharm and 703,596 had got two jabs during the period.

"China has emerged as the most credible source of vaccine supply ... ," Dr. Basudev Pandey, former director of the Epidemiology and Disease Control Division under the Ministry of Health and Population, told Xinhua.

"The Chinese vaccines have also been well received in Nepal because of hardly any adverse side effect and entry permits (have been) given to people inoculated with Chinese vaccines in some Gulf countries where a large number of Nepali migrant workers are employed," he said.

On July 13, Nepal's cabinet decided to vaccinate one third of the population by mid-October and fully inoculate all the eligible people by mid-April 2022.