The Chinese government said on Thursday that it had given conditional approval to a homegrown coronavirus vaccine after an early analysis of clinical trial results showed that it was effective, sending a positive signal for the global rollout of Chinese vaccines. The candidate is the first one approved for general use in China.

The manufacturer, a state-controlled company called Sinopharm, said a vaccine candidate made by its Beijing Institute of Biological Products arm had an efficacy rate of 79 per cent based on an interim analysis of Phase 3 clinical trials.

Zeng Yixin, a deputy minister at the National Health Commission, said the vaccine would be provided to the Chinese public free of cost, a reversal of previous official statements.

More than 60,000 people in countries like the UAE and Bahrain had been vaccinated as part of the trials, Wu Yonglin of Sinopharm said at a media briefing organised by the government. But officials did not disclose crucial details about the vaccine, like any serious side effects that may have occurred in the trials or the demographic characteristics of the sample population — key data points that scientists look for in such releases.

Wu said that detailed data would be published later in major scientific research journals.

Chen Shifei, deputy director of the State Drug Administration, said at the briefing that Sinopharm had submitted the application for conditional use on December 23. He added that the conditional listing meant that the vaccine would be subject to a rolling review as Sinopharm continued its Phase 3 clinical trials.