We must remove barriers that hinder distribution of COVID 19 vaccines worldwide, Cuban expert asserts

HAVANA, Cuba, Jan 25 (ACN) Olga Lidia Jacobo, director of the Center for State Control of Medicines, Equipment and Medical Devices (CECMED by its Spanish acronym), joined today the call to remove the obstacles that hinder access and distribution of vaccines against COVID-19 in the world.

She stated this at the international political forum at the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP by its Spanish acronym), in Havana.

The directive recognized the efforts of the international community and the competent international organizations, particularly the World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization, to combat the pandemic and to seek initiatives for a global and equitable access to immunogens.

On the other hand, she highlighted that the Cuban pharmaceutical industry managed to develop five vaccine candidates against COVID-19, three of which are already vaccines and have Authorization for Use in Emergencies, in the midst of a pandemic situation and a context of tightening of the economic, commercial and financial blockade by the United States.

The proven benefits of these vaccines play a key role in controlling the epidemic in the country, the expert stressed.

Soberana 02, Soberana Plus and Abdala fulfilled all the required phases with evaluation and approval by CECMED, which carried out inspections at the clinical sites where the trials were carried out to verify compliance with Good Clinical Practices, and inspected and certified all the manufacturing plants involved in the production processes.

Lidia Jacobo noted that the formulations have demonstrated an adequate safety profile and have been well tolerated after having been applied in millions of doses in adults and children in Cuba and other countries, once CECMED granted them the Authorization for Use in Emergencies.
CECMED, founded in 1989, complies with the six basic functions established by the WHO for National Regulatory Authorities, which have been evaluated in different inspections carried out by that organization and PAHO, and has accumulated extensive experience in the evaluation of vaccines.