Mexico and Argentina have the capacity to produce more than 400 million doses of a coronavirus vaccine being developed by Britain's University of Oxford, DPA quoted Sylvia Varela from AstraZeneca as saying on Thursday. Argentinian President Alberto Fernandez announced Wednesday that his country and Mexico will be in charge of the Latin American production of the vaccine, developed in cooperation with the Swedish-British pharmaceutical group, once it receives regulatory approval. Production is due to start in the first quarter of 2021 for Latin America and the Caribbean, except for Brazil, if the final trials of the vaccine are successful. Phase 3 clinical trials on 50,000 people are expected to conclude in November or December. Speaking at a press conference with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Varela said the agreement initially foresees production of 150 million doses. But negotiations were starting on Thursday with countries with a total of 650 million inhabitants, and it is possible production will surpass 400 million doses, Varela said. Countries including Panama, El Salvador, Chile and Colombia have already signaled interest. AstraZeneca earlier agreed to produce 100 million doses for Brazil. — SPA
