Belgium has become the latest European country to recognize the Covishield vaccine, which was developed by Oxford-Astrazeneca and was being produced by the Indian Serum Institute (SII).
“Belgium acknowledged the Covishield, AstraZeneca vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India and distributed by Covax. Important decisions for India, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Bangladesh in the war against vaccine inequality,” Belgian Embassy in India said on the day Friday.
The cost of the D’Affaires of the Belgian Embassy, Arnaud Lion said that the recognition of Covishield by his country would have a positive impact on everyone who received a vaccine shot in India and abroad.
“On July 7, the inter-ministerial conference in Belgium decided to recognize the covishield vaccination, which would have a positive impact that I expected for everyone in India and outside India vaccinated with Covishield,” Lion said as quoted by Ani’s news agency.
With this, a total of 15 countries in the EU have confirmed that they will allow tourists from India who have taken Covishield’s shots to enter their territory.
This is also indicated by the Head of World Health Scientist (WHO) Soumya Swaminathan.
“15 countries in the EU now recognize covidshield for travelers,” he wrote on Twitter.
Other countries included in the list are – Switzerland, Iceland, Austria, Bulgaria, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.
Estonia has also confirmed that it will recognize all vaccines authorized by the Indian government to travel with Indians.
What does it mean?
Recognition from the EU will help people take advantage of Covid Digital EU or “Green Pass” certificates, with the aim of facilitating free movements during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Under this framework, people who have taken vaccines authorized by the European Medicine Agency (EMA) will be released from restrictions on traveling in the European Union. Documents will be mandatory to travel to European countries.
Individual member countries have the flexibility to also receive vaccines that have been authorized at the national level or recognized by WHO. There are 27 member countries in the EU.
The European Parliament has mandated that all member countries must receive a vaccination certificate issued in other EU countries for vaccines authorized by EMA.
At present, this includes a vaccine produced by Pfizer, Modera, Vaxzevria (formerly Astrazeneca) and Johnson and Johnson.
India previously asked the EU countries to allow Indian travelers to produce a vaccination certificate issued by the Cowin Portal of the Indian government to be released from travel restrictions such as compulsory quarantine or self isolation after arriving at their destination.
The Minister of External Affairs Jaishankar last month took the issue of the covishield in the Covid Digital EU certificate scheme during the meeting with Josep Borrell Fontelles, a high representative of the European Union.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the G20 meeting in Italy.
