A woman receives an injection of the COVID-19 vaccine at a healthcare center in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, Dec. 30, 2020. (Xinhua/Liang Xu)

The Chinese government has always made the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines a priority, and vaccine manufacturers have always adhered to scientific rules and regulations in pushing forward vaccine development, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Monday, as more countries began rolling out Chinese-made vaccines. 

Egypt officially licensed the COVID-19 vaccines made by China National Pharmaceutical Group Corp for emergency use, with the inoculation campaign expected to begin later this month. Indonesia also began nationwide distribution of vaccines made by another major Chinese producer Sinovac Biotech starting from Sunday. 

When asked about the safety and efficacy of the domestically made vaccines, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a routine press conference on Monday that the Chinese government has always made the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines a priority, and Chinese vaccine manufacturers have strictly adhered to scientific rules and regulations in pushing forward vaccine development in accordance with the law. 

China always holds an open attitude toward global cooperation on vaccines, and actively supports Chinese enterprises in working with their foreign counterparts in vaccine development and production, the Chinese official said. For the moment, several Chinese made vaccines are carrying out Phase-III clinical trials overseas, which have all been going smoothly, Hua noted. 

China will further honor its promises by putting COVID-19 vaccines into use as a global public goods after the research and development is finalized, Hua stressed, as the country has joined the COVAX global scheme for vaccine distribution, contributing its efforts to making vaccines accessible and affordable in developing countries. 

China on Thursday announced that it has granted conditional market approval for its first homemade COVID-19 vaccine, which was developed by Sinopharm, marking a monumental step in the battle against the pandemic.

"This also fully demonstrated the safety and efficacy of Chinese-made vaccines, and China is willing to work with others in accelerating the fair distribution of vaccines globally," Hua said.