Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque has lauded the collaborative efforts between Bangladesh and the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) in improving the disease surveillance of Bangladesh.

He hoped that through this cooperation, Bangladesh would be able to control virus-borne communicable diseases and produce vaccines domestically and supply to the global market.

The International Vaccine Institute (IVI) held a ceremony at its headquarters, welcoming Bangladesh’s accession to the IVI. 

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Representatives of the Government of Bangladesh, members of the diplomatic community in Seoul, and representatives of the IVI member states attended the event.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam expressed gratitude to the IVI for supporting and facilitating the accession process of Bangladesh and for providing assistance to the country through vaccine research and development, vaccine technology transfer, research and capacity-building collaboration. 

He hoped that Bangladesh’s new role as a state party to the IVI would further expand and consolidate cooperation between Bangladesh and IVI in the days ahead.

Bangladesh Ambassador to South Korea Abida Islam attended the ceremony in person and raised Bangladesh’s flag at the IVI Headquarters in the presence of IVI Director-General Dr Jerome Kim and others.

Abdul Muktadir, Chairman and Managing Director of the Incepta Vaccine Ltd, and Dr Tahmeed Ahmed, Executive Director of the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh, virtually participated in the event.

Chairperson of IVI’s Board of Trustees, George Bickerstaff welcomed Bangladesh’s ratification of the IVI Establishment Agreement, becoming one of the state parties to the IVI. 

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He also highlighted the collaboration of IVI with the Government of Bangladesh for the past 20 years "to advance and make available safe, effective and affordable vaccines where they are needed the most".  

He expressed hope that with Bangladesh's membership in the IVI, there will be continued collaborations across clinical development, epidemiology and technology transfer to advance vaccine solutions for urgent global public health challenges.

Ambassador Abida Islam said that the accession of Bangladesh to the IVI is indeed a remarkable event that envisions a future free of vaccine-preventable death and illness. 

She also expressed hope that this membership will pave the way for enhanced research, clinical development and manufacture of affordable vaccines in Bangladesh and will help the country to contribute to the greater good of humankind, globally.

Chairman and Managing Director of Incepta Vaccine Abdul Muktadir said the invaluable support from IVI has helped the firm substantially in manufacturing various vaccines in Bangladesh. 

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Dr Tahmeed Ahmed of the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh, highlighted the collaborative efforts with the IVI and the pharmaceutical industries of Bangladesh in developing different kinds of vaccines, including the oral cholera jab. 

He expressed hope that this collaboration can bring wonders in the development of Covid-19 vaccines and help fight the pandemic in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh is a founding signatory to IVI’s Establishment Agreement.