Improving vaccine production capacity in Vietnam

The workshop is an activity within the framework of the project "Supporting enhanced access to vaccines and health system capacity for Vietnam to respond to Covid-19" funded by the Government of Japan through UNDP to enhance access to vaccines and certification of Covid-19 vaccines in Vietnam.

Speaking at the workshop, Mr. Patrick Haverman, Deputy Resident Representative of UNDP in Vietnam, said: This is an important opportunity for Vietnam to access mRNA technology for vaccine production. However, this also requires careful consideration of the steps and timing, scale and capital investment required as well as the development of expertise to ensure the efficiency and financial sustainability of the technology transfer.

“The results of the research shared at the workshop will provide further information on this issue. The coordination between departments, offices, institutes, enterprises, senior experts and important partners at the workshop contributes to building an effective national strategy to increase access to vaccines in Vietnam and the wider region in the coming time,” Mr. Patrick Haverman emphasized.

At the workshop, speakers shared the main findings of three important studies conducted in the project, including: Overview of international experience in developing and producing domestic vaccines, current status of production capacity and demand for vaccine production in Vietnam, and proposed roadmap to build Vietnam into a regional vaccine production center.

Sharing about Vietnam's strengths in vaccine production, Dr. Nguyen Khanh Phuong, Deputy Director of the Institute of Health Strategy and Policy, said: Vietnam has extensive experience in vaccine production with 4 state-owned enterprises and a number of private facilities all meeting GMP standards (good manufacturing practices). Vietnam also has the ability to master vaccine production technology because it has previously mastered technologies such as inactivated vaccines, toxoid vaccines, subunit vaccines, etc. Vietnam is one of the few countries that is almost fully proactive in vaccines in expanded immunization (10/11 vaccines). In 2015, Vietnam's national vaccine management system achieved the "Good Performance" certification according to the World Health Organization (WHO) Vaccine Evaluation Toolkit.

In order for Vietnam to become a regional vaccine production center, according to Dr. Nguyen Khanh Phuong, Vietnam needs to focus on developing highly qualified and skilled human resources for vaccine production and building GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) production facilities with a scale to meet domestic and export demand.

In addition, Vietnam needs to improve its quality management system to meet international standards, continue to strengthen the national vaccine management system, and achieve World Health Organization (WHO) certification. Develop relevant policies to promote vaccine research and production to meet domestic and export needs.

News and photos: LA DUY

Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/y-te/tin-tuc/nang-cao-nang-luc-san-xuat-vaccine-tai-viet-nam-728910