The National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) has not yet granted approval for emergency use of the Chinese Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine to be administered to Sri Lankans. However, it has approved the acceptance of a donation of the same from the Chinese Government to be administered to Chinese nationals residing in Sri Lanka, The Sunday Morning learnt. This is despite the recent statement by the State Minister for the Production, Supply, and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals Prof. Channa Jayasumana that the NMRA had granted approval to use the Sinopharm vaccine in Sri Lanka. However, the NMRA had only granted approval for the use of the Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine to be administered to Chinese nationals residing in Sri Lanka, The Sunday Morning learnt. Also, this approval is only for the acceptance of a donation of Sinopharm vaccines, it is reliably learnt. “There was a request for the Sinopharm vaccine since there was a donation of the vaccines pending, and there was a request regarding the possibility of administering this stock to the Chinese nationals residing in Sri Lanka. The NMRA, after deliberations, decided to approve the acceptance of the donation and to explore the possibility of administering it to the Chinese nationals in Sri Lanka,” NMRA sources said. Sources at the NMRA explained that while several meetings on the Chinese vaccine were held on Friday (19), no final decision was made to grant approval for the import or emergency use of the vaccine for locals. As for the granting of approval for the official importation of the Chinese vaccine, it would take place only after the technical committee conducts the required evaluation process, The Sunday Morning was informed. Speaking with The Sunday Morning, NMRA CEO Dr. Kamal Jayasinghe said: “The Sinopharm vaccines are a donation from the Chinese Government and the NMRA has given approval to accept the donation.” China had earlier offered to donate 600,000 Covid-19 vaccines to Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to China Dr. Palitha Kohona was recently quoted as saying that the Embassy had held talks with two major vaccine manufacturers in China. According to Dr. Kohona, eventually, the Chinese Government had offered 300,000 vaccines as a gift to Sri Lanka. Attempts by The Sunday Morning to contact Prof. Jayasumana for comment proved futile. Meanwhile, the NMRA is yet to be informed of the date when the next shipment of the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine from India’s Serum Institute would arrive in the country. “We believe it would be in another two weeks’ time, but we are yet to be informed of a date,” NMRA sources said. The NMRA has already granted approval for emergency use of the AstraZeneca vaccine.