PUTRAJAYA is considering the Novavax vaccine candidate, which has an efficacy rate of 89.3% , in its portfolio, said Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin today.

The protein-based Covid-19 vaccine called NVX-CoV2373 is developed by US-based biotechnology company, Novavax, Inc.

Khairy also said that Putrajaya may not go through with the negotiations with Johnson & Johnson as the company will only be able to deliver its vaccines in the fourth quarter of the year.

“We will decide on Thursday but it looks like we might have to drop it because they can only give two million doses by the end of the year and that for us is a bit too late,” he said in a press conference today.

He said, therefore, there is a huge possibility that the government might opt to continue negotiations for China for its CanSinoBIO vaccine.

“This is a single dose vaccine and it is a better choice than Johnson & Johnson, which can only send the vaccines in the fourth quarter,” he said.

As for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, Khairy said Malaysia will receive all 32 million doses by this year.

The increased doses are part of a new agreement inked with Pfizer Inc. 

Khairy added that Malaysia will also receive 100,000 doses of vaccines from China’s Sinovac on March 15. – March 8, 2021.