Oman will allow the import and use of Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE’s Covid-19 vaccine for people over the age of 16, its state-run agency reported on Tuesday.
The country joins neighbours Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain in allowing the shot, which the companies have said is 95 percent effective in preventing illness.
The shot is based on messenger RNA – a new technology that essentially transforms the body’s cells into tiny vaccine-making machines, instructing cells to make copies of the coronavirus spike protein, which stimulates the production of protective antibodies.
The report said the General Directorate of Pharmacy and Drug Control in the sultanate “reached a conclusion that the known and potential benefits of the vaccine outweigh its expected risks and after it has been approved by the health authorities in the United Kingdom and Canada and the US Food and Drug Administration”.
Bahrain has also approved the vaccine from China’s Sinopharm Group Co Ltd., which is said to have an 86 percent efficacy.
The United Arab Emirates rolled out the Sinopharm vaccination in Abu Dhabi earlier this week.
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