Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Drug and Food Control Agency (BPOM) has said it supports the domestic development of coronavirus drugs and vaccines, including the COVID-19 GX-19N vaccine developed by Indonesia's PT Kalbe Farma and South Korea's Genexine.
"We hope there will be a transfer of technology so PT Kalbe Farma can produce it (the vaccine) at home," BPOM Chief Penny Lukito said at an online press conference here on Friday.
The development of the vaccine has reached the preparation stage for the second and third phases of clinical tests in Indonesia, she informed
The clinical tests in Indonesia are a great chance since the country has a large population, she observed.
The clinical tests must meet scientific aspects and uphold research ethics, in accordance with the guidance on good practice of clinical testing, she said.
The Phase 2b/3 clinical tests for the vaccine kicked off at the end of June, 2021 and an interim analysis is expected to be conducted for testing its security and efficacy at the end of this year, she added.
PT Kalbe Farma chief commissioner Irawati Setiady has claimed Phase 2b.B of the clinical test has been successful and emergency-use authorization for the vaccine has been secured from BPOM. Hence, the GX-19N vaccine can complement the existing vaccines, she said.
"To that end, Genexine is committed to supplying 10 million doses of the vaccine and later transferring technology for the production of the vaccine to Indonesia," she informed.
Kalbe Farma director Sie Djohan expressed the hope the Indonesian people would receive the vaccine at the end of this year.
He said he could not provide details on the price of the vaccine since it is under development.
"We have agreed that the project is non-profit. We want the vaccine to be useful for the community," he remarked.
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