KUALA LUMPUR: MY E.G. Services Bhd (MyEG) has partnered with Anhui Zhifei Longcom Biopharmaceutical Co Ltd (Zhifei) to obtain Malaysian halal certification for the Chinese biopharma company's Covid-19 vaccine and to exclusively distribute the vaccine here over three years.
In a statement, the e-government services provider said it had today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cooperate in conducting phase three clinical trials of Zhifei's vaccine in Malaysia and in achieving compliance to secure halal certification from the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim).
MyEG said Jakim's halal accreditation would ensure increased acceptance of the vaccine among the global Muslim population as the certification is an internationally-recognised standard.
The commencement of phase three trial will make Zhifei's vaccine one of the first to undergo this final stage trial in Malaysia under the purview of the Ministry of Health.
Upon successful completion of the trials, MyEG will be the sole distributor of the vaccine in Malaysia.
MYEG said it had leveraged its strengths and expertise as a leading digital services provider in the region to embark on a number of significant initiatives, guided by an overarching vision to provide a holistic solution to help in the fight against Covid-19.
"We see the need for the establishment of a system to manage the logistics and administrative challenges for Covid-19 testing and vaccination to ensure effective implementation in the ongoing battle against the pandemic," said MyEG.
The company said its cooperation with Zhifei represented a fitting and important complement to the group's other related initiatives that are already ongoing.
Since November 1 this year, MyEG has been appointed by the Ministry of Health to develop and operate the MySafeTravel digital health pass system to facilitate inbound travellers' compliance to mandatory Covid-19 testing and quarantine requirements.
Additionally, MyEG operates a one-stop portal for the Covid-19 screening of workers in the country, which includes a data sharing collaboration with the Department of Labour of Peninsular Malaysia.
Zhifei is a subsidiary of Chongqing Zhifei Biological Products Co Ltd, which is listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange and has been engaged in the biological products industry since 2002, mainly the production of vaccines for human use.
Zhifei is one of five Chinese companies conducting phase three clinical trials of Covid-19 vaccines in various parts of the world.