To the question ‘Would you agree that Colombia acquires or produces the Cuban vaccine to help overcome the Covid-19 crisis?’, 70.1 percent of those questioned said yes, according to the poll conducted on Twitter.
The media, politicians and representatives of various Colombian social sectors set their sights on the five Cuban vaccine candidates against Covid-19.
In an article in El Espectador newspaper, journalist and writer Patricia Lara Salive urged the Ivan Duque government and the Ministry of Health to acquire the Cuban candidates Soberana 02 and Abdala.
The analyst explained what Cuba can offer ‘now that the coronavirus in Colombia becomes distressing, there are delays in shipments of the Sinovac vaccine and the United States recommends suspending the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.’
‘Meanwhile, the shipment, at a reasonable price (…) of a large number of Soberana 02 and Abdala vaccines, which will soon finish their phase III clinical trial and are already in controlled population intervention trial,’ she explained.
The congresswoman pointed out that Soberana Plus entered phase III of clinical trials and would be ideal for children, adults over 80 years old and Covid-19 convalescents, so that they can increase their immune response, while Mambisa and Soberana 01 are in the 1st phase.
‘But the most interesting thing is that Cuba can transfer to Colombia, in a very short time, the technology to set up its own vaccine production in the final phase, from the pharmaceutical ingredient that Cuba would supply, as will be done in Iran and Venezuela,’ she emphasized.
Lara Salive noted that the development of Cuban vaccines is not out of the blue, because due to the US economic blockade, the historic leader of the Revolution, Fidel Castro, was determined to turn Cuba into a biotechnological power.
Recently, the El Tiempo daily addressed the issue based on a call by ‘Colombia Humana’ Senator Gustavo Petro on Duque to establish an agreement for the production of Cuban vaccines in Colombia.
‘In a few months Cuba could create the first vaccine in Latin America against Covid-19. Two of its vaccines, Soberana 02 and Abdala, are in the 3rd phase of clinical trials,’ noted the El Tiempo.
‘That is, the last step before the Cuban National Regulatory Agency can give them the go-ahead and administer them to the population, as well as showing the results to the rest of the international counterpart organizations,’ it refers.
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