A new Chinese inactivated COVID-19 vaccine is available for emergency use in the country, further boosting its vaccine development and mass production capability, Science and Technology Daily reported on Wednesday.

The vaccine has been developed by the Institute of Medical Biology, an underling of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences. Clinical trials show it can provide effective protection after two doses of injections and against virus variants, the paper said. 

The annual production is estimated to reach between 500 million and 1 billion doses by the end of 2021, enhancing the fight against COVID-19 globally.

Twenty-one COVID-19 vaccines have entered clinical trials in China, Xinhua reported on Monday.

Four have been granted conditional marketing approval and three have been authorized for emergency use within the country, Zeng Yixin, deputy head of the National Health Commission said on Sunday.

Eight have been approved for phase three clinical trial overseas, while one messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine has met the ethical requirements for phase three trials overseas, Zeng added. 

Read more about the phase three trial of this new inactivated COVID-19 vaccine.

(With input from Xinhua)