Russia and Kazakhstan sign agreement on Sputnik-V

Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, the RDIF has signed a cooperation agreement with the Ministry of Health of Kazakhstan to facilitate the registration, production and distribution of Russia's Sputnik-V vaccine.

Moscow: The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF, Russia’s sovereign wealth fund) and the Ministry of Health of Kazakhstan have announced a cooperation agreement to facilitate the registration, production and distribution of Russia's Sputnik-V vaccine.

Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of Russian Direct Investment Fund, and Alexey Tsoy, Minister of Health of Kazakhstan, took part in the signing ceremony today.

Upon obtaining the regulatory approval, the production technology and the materials required for the production of 2 million doses of the vaccine will be transferred to Kazakhstan.

Currently, Phase III clinical trials are ongoing in Belarus, the UAE, Venezuela and a number of other countries, as well as Phase II-III being underway in India. Requests for more than 1.2 billion doses of the Sputnik V vaccine have come from more than 50 countries. Vaccine production for the global market will be undertaken by RDIF’s international partners in India, Brazil, China, South Korea and four other countries.

On November 24, the Gamaleya Center and RDIF announced positive results of the second interim data analysis of the largest double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled Phase III clinical trials in Russia’s history, involving 40,000 volunteers. Interim trial results have once again confirmed the high efficacy of the Sputnik V vaccine. Evaluation of efficacy was carried out among volunteers (n = 18,794) 28 days after receiving the first dose (7 days after the second dose) of the vaccine or placebo upon reaching the second control point of the trial in compliance with the clinical trial protocol. The analysis demonstrated a 91.4% efficacy rate for the Sputnik V vaccine.

Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the RDIF, commented: “The agreement between RDIF and the Republic of Kazakhstan will help the country's population obtain access to a coronavirus vaccine with an efficacy of more than 91%, created using a proven and well-studied platform of human adenovirus vectors. The production of the Sputnik V vaccine, which will soon be launched in Kazakhstan, will reduce logistical costs and ensure the quick supply of the vaccine to clinics. Furthermore, the exchange of technological, scientific and medical experience and best practices between our countries will increase”.