A Cuban nurse holds a vial of the Soberana 2 vaccine. (Photo: AFP-Yonhap)
Cuba says a vaccine it has developed has shown more than 60 percent efficacy against coronavirus infections in late stage trials with two doses.
The news comes as the country is facing its worst outbreak since the start of the pandemic with the spread of more contagious variants.
The state-run institute that developed the Soberana 2 shot said it hoped the efficacy figure would be even higher when results became available for the recommended three doses.
Vicente Verez Bencomo, director of Cuba's Finlay Institute of Vaccines, said the results so far were significant.
[Clip: Bencomo]
"This is really a very comforting result because it was obtained in a scenario when mutant strains are circulating. We're talking about efficacy not against the original strain but efficacy against the combination of the strains circulating in Havana at the moment."
The Communist-run country has been relying on its own vaccines rather than foreign-made imports.
According to official data, daily new cases have halved since the start of Cuba's vaccination drive in mid-May, although lockdowns may have also had an impact.
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