Bangladesh approves emergency use of J&J Covid-19 vaccine

The Directorate General of Drug Administration on Tuesday approved the emergency use of Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Covid-19 vaccine as the country grapples to meet the rising demand for vaccine.

The drug administration cleared the emergency use of the single-dose vaccine following recommendation of an evaluation committee, a press release said.

Janssen, manufactured by Johnson & Johnson, is the sixth Covid-19 vaccine to be approved by Bangladesh.

The Line Director (MNC&H) of the Directorate General of Health Services is the local distributor of the vaccine, the statement said.

People aged 18 and above can receive the jab. It can be stored at a temperature of 2-8 degrees Celsius.

The World Health Organization, the US Food and Drug Administration, and the European Medicines Agency also approved Janssen for emergency use.

Earlier, the Bangladeshi drug authorities approved China’s Sinovac on June 3, Pfizer-BioNTech on May 27, China's Sinopharm on April 29, Russia's Sputnik V on April 27, and Covishield from neighbouring India on January 7.