Zimbabwe Agrees To Participate In COVID-19 Vaccine Tests
Zimbabwe has agreed to participate in the ongoing clinical trial for candidate coronavirus vaccines that is meant to look at how people respond to a new intervention and what side effects might occur.
The development was revealed at yesterday’s update between Health and Child Care Minister Dr Obadiah Moyo and a team of scientists whose insights are informing the country’s Covid-19 response.
National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Director Professor Nicholas Midzi said the trial was meant to broaden the sample and expedite the finding of a vaccine. He said:
Solidarity trial is an international clinical trial, where countries will be administering candidate treatments to patients.
Treatment options under this trial include Remdesivir, which was previously tested as an Ebola treatment, Lopinavir or Ritonavir a licensed treatment for HIV, Interferon beta-1a, which is used to treat multiple sclerosis as well as chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine used to treat malaria and rheumatology conditions respectively.
The Herald reports that all these treatments have been tested in China and Europe, but need randomised tests in other environments, it does not tell what the outcome was.
The trials come amid conspiracy theories suggesting that the purported vaccines are poisons to wipe out the African race.
More: The Herald
