'Turkey 3rd in world in developing local vaccines'

After the US and China, Turkey has become the 3rd country to develop vaccines locally, according to the World Health Organization data, said President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Sunday.

Speaking at the opening of TUBITAK (Turkey's Scientific and Technological Research Council) Excellence Centers in the Gebze district of the northwestern Kocaeli province, Erdoğan said Turkey has made great progress in developing vaccines and drugs against COVID-19 in collaboration with state, private sectors and universities.

"COVID-19 Turkey Platform, founded by TUBITAK, is currently working on eight different vaccines and 10 different medicine projects [for COVID-19]," he added.

Trials on animals for two candidate vaccines have been completed. One of them even received ethical clearance and started its clinical phase on humans, the president further said.

Turkey has so far confirmed 239,622 cases and 222,656 recoveries from the novel coronavirus, with the death toll standing at 5,829.

Since it originated in China last December, the coronavirus pandemic has claimed over 727,700 lives in 188 countries and regions.

More than 19.68 million COVID-19 cases have been reported around the world so far, with over 11.96 million, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University.

The US, Brazil, India, and Russia are currently the worst-hit countries in the world.