TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Singapore, the Philippines, and Vietnam are among six countries that have expressed interest in participating in Phase III trials of Taiwan's first COVID-19 vaccine, which is being developed by Taiwanese vaccine maker Adimmune Corporation (國光生技).

Adimmune chairman Steve Chan (詹啟賢) was cited by CNA on Thursday (Aug. 27) as saying that if the current round of human trials for the AdimrSC-2f vaccine (COVID-19 S-protein) go successfully, it could enter Phase II trials by November. If the results of the current round of trials are found to be favorable, Adimmune will discuss plans for Phase II and Phase III trials with Taiwan's Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Adimmune plans to complete Phase II trials on 3,000 subjects before the Lunar New Year. Phase III will involve multiple medical centers in several countries.

Currently, Singapore, the Philippines, Vietnam, the Czech Republic, Brazil, and Turkey have expressed interest in participating in the Phase III trials. Chan said that plans for the clinical trials in those countries will be implemented after a comprehensive evaluation.

Chan added that many countries have proactively contacted his company about cooperating in the development of the vaccine and its later mass production. He said that in addition to producing the vaccine in Taiwan, the company will work on setting up plants overseas.

The chairman emphasized that the firm's experimental vaccine is in the top 20 percent in the world in terms of development speed, reported Newtalk. Chan said that although progress on the vaccine is not as fast as candidates in Europe and North America, Adimmune's product is still ahead of Asian rivals in Japan and South Korea.