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North Korean children take an English class using video equipment at an elementary school in Pyongyang in this undated photo released by the Chosun Sinbo, a Tokyo-based pro-Pyongyang newspaper, on Tuesday. (Yonhap News)

COVAX, the global COVID-19 vaccine purchasing program, has designated nearly 3 million doses of a Chinese-made vaccine for North Korea.

COVAX’s allocation of the Sinovac vaccine was reported on Wednesday by US-funded Radio Free Asia, which quoted the director of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) office in Pyongyang and the spokesperson of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

This report was basically confirmed by an official from South Korea’s Unification Ministry, who said on Thursday that “COVAX and the North Korean authorities are apparently in deliberations about Sinovac support.”

“During the latest round of COVAX vaccine allocation [. . .], 2.97 million doses of Sinovac is being allocated to [North] Korea. We are still waiting for [their] response to this offer,” Edwin Salvador, head of the WHO’s Pyongyang office, told Radio Free Asia.

The Gavi spokesperson confirmed that COVAX had allocated 2,979,600 shots of Sinovac to North Korea in its 6th round of COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

“Gavi is currently in dialogue with DPRK to operationalize the support,” the spokesperson said, using the acronym for North Korea’s official name.

Considering that COVAX already allocated 1,992,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to North Korea early this year, the additional supply of the Sinovac vaccine would bring North Korea’s total share to 5 million doses.

Salvador noted that North Korea has “a good track record on routine immunization” and said that the North’s “immunization system and network is expected to manage the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccination with adequate technical support such as on cold chain logistics and monitoring and surveillance during its implementation.”

Salvador also noted that North Korea has been offered COVID-19 vaccine delivery support under a new funding opportunity that is available to all eligible COVAX participants.

“If the country will express interest, WHO and UNICEF will begin to work on the proposal to Gavi,” he added.

But it’s too soon to say whether North Korea will actually receive the supply of COVID-19 vaccine allocated by COVAX. The AstraZeneca vaccine allocated at the beginning of the year still hasn’t been delivered to the North.

The Institute for National Security Strategy, affiliated with South Korea’s National Intelligence Service, addressed this issue in a briefing about the situation in North Korea at the Four Seasons Hotel in Seoul on July 9.

“North Korea has refused to receive the AstraZeneca offered by COVAX because of concerns about the vaccine’s side effects and is exploring the possibility of replacing that with another vaccine. But it’s also hesitant to accept Chinese-made vaccine because it doesn’t trust [its efficacy],” the institute said in the briefing.

By Lee Je-hun, senior staff writer

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]