The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday that it's evaluating data submitted by China's Sinovac and Sinopharm on their COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use.

The WHO commends China for submitting the data of two vaccines developed using the inactivated virus for its Emergency Use Listing procedure, said Katherine O'Brien, director of WHO's Department of Immunization, Vaccines and Biologicals.

The WHO is also looking forward to reviewing the data through its policy process, O'Brien added. It will be carried out separately by the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization, which makes recommendations on how to use the vaccines.

The Sinopharm vaccine is in the process of assessment, according to the latest WHO files. Sinovac submitted its vaccine data in mid-January and is expected to submit more dossiers by the end of this month. Final assessments of the two vaccines are expected as early as March.

Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, also praised China's efforts on COVID-19 vaccines, saying China is an early participant in the COVAX, a global initiative to accelerate the development and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines.

"We know that a number of the vaccines that are moving forward in China have been submitted for prequalification to the WHO, which is an important part, and we continue to have a conversation with them," said Berkley.

(With input from Xinhua News Agency)