The Indian Ambassador to Kuwait, Sibi George, has clarified that the Covishield vaccine in India has been approved in Kuwait, as it is the same as the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, which is recognized in Kuwait.
“For those Indian expats who wish to return to Kuwait should choose AstraZeneca as an option while uploading their vaccination certificates,” the ambassador said.
Speaking to a Kuwaiti newspaper, Sibi George told that the AstraZeneca vaccine made in India has global recognition and that India sent 200,000 doses of this vaccine to Kuwait in February.
India’s version of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is known as ‘Covishield’. The vaccine is developed by the UK-based AstraZeneca Laboratories and the University of Oxford, and is manufactured by the Serum Institute of India.
“There is no problem for Indian workers returning to Kuwait if their vaccination certificates bear the name of this vaccine,” George said.
Out of the total 4.8 million population in Kuwait, approximately one million are Indians.
Kuwait has so far permitted emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech, Oxford-AstraZeneca and the Johnson & Johnson vaccines.
The Kuwait government had announced on June 26th that non-residents will be allowed to enter the country from 1st August, provided, they are fully vaccinated with Covid-19 vaccines approved by Kuwait.
The announcement came four months after the country suspended entry of non-nationals.
