BRUNEI CONSIDERS VARIOUS COVID-19 VACCINE CHOICES

30 Jan 2021

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: Brunei is mulling various vaccines, including those from the U.S., Europe and China to be used in the country, Haji Mohd Isham, the sultanate's Minister of Health said.

"We have informed the public that the Ministry of Health will get five percent of AstraZeneca through bilateral arrangement and another 15 per cent from the COVAX (a WHO-led COVID-19 vaccine access plan) facility, totaling 20 per cent," the minister was quoted as saying by local daily the Borneo Bulletin on Friday.

"Other vaccines to be used by Brunei Darussalam are still under scrutiny and we have not rejected any vaccines yet, including Pfizer, which has shown high efficacy, despite the fact that it needs a cold storage temperature of minus 80 degrees Celsius (-80 degrees)," China’s Xinhua news agency qouting him as saying.

According to the minister, Brunei is also assessing the Moderna vaccine, which needs cold storage temperature of only minus 20 degrees Celsius (-20 degrees).

Haji Mohd Isham said that vaccines from China, such as SinoPharma and Sinovac, are also being assessed.

Brunei government recently extended the temporary suspension of the entry of foreign nationals from Malaysia - including transits through Brunei via land and sea - by 14 days to Feb. 10. -Bernama