Global Health Authorities Expect to Address Vaccine Inequality Through WHO Hub

'2022 World Bio Summit' on the 26th

On the morning of the 26th, Park Min-su, Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, Ali Mrabet, Minister of Welfare of Tunisia, Sandra de Castro Barros, Vice Minister of Health of Brazil, Juan Pablo Uribe, Director of Health, Nutrition and Population at the World Bank, Bruno Carrasco, Director of Sustainable Development and Climate Change at the Asian Development Bank, and Padmashree Sampath, Special Advisor on Pharmaceuticals and Health at the African Development Bank (from left), attended the 'World Bio Summit 2022' held at Grand Walkerhill Seoul in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul.
/Photo by Kim Young-won

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-won] Park Min-su, Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, and heads of global health authorities expressed their hopes that the World Health Organization (WHO)'s Global Bio Workforce Training Hub and messenger RNA (mRNA) technology transfer hub will help resolve vaccine inequality.

At the 'World Bio Summit 2022' held on the 26th, they made these remarks under the theme of 'Each country's COVID-19 response efforts and expectations for the mRNA technology transfer hub and the Global Bio Workforce Training Hub.'

Vice Minister Park said, "Through the Global Bio Workforce Training Hub, we want to be a small but helpful presence to neighboring countries," adding, "We hope to resolve vaccine inequality and respond better to future pandemics."

Earlier, South Korea was selected as the WHO's Global Bio Workforce Training Hub in February. Accordingly, it will serve as a central institution providing education and training on vaccine and biopharmaceutical production processes to help low- and middle-income countries build the capacity to independently develop and manufacture vaccines.

Four training courses are planned for this year, with two currently underway. Vice Minister Park explained, "The third course is scheduled to start at the end of this month and will provide education on the knowledge required to operate vaccine and biopharmaceutical manufacturing facilities as well as regulatory approval processes."

He continued, "The fourth course will be customized on-site training designed to reflect the needs of manufacturers," adding, "I visited Bangladesh in July this year and plan to provide consulting for companies in Bangladesh and South Africa going forward."

Vice Minister Park explained that the training programs will be further expanded in the future. He stated, "We will introduce various programs covering the entire vaccine cycle and development licensing," and "We will also expand educational facilities to conduct more hands-on training." Currently, two facilities for education are under construction, aiming for completion in 2024.

Heads of health authorities from various countries also spoke about COVID-19 responses and the WHO hubs. Sandra de Castro Barros, Vice Minister of Health of Brazil, a beneficiary country of the mRNA technology transfer in Latin America, said, "Since being designated as a hub, we have decided to research not only COVID-19 but also other pathogens and a wide range of chronic diseases using mRNA technology."

Ali Mrabet, Minister of Social Affairs of Tunisia, emphasized, "Africa produces less than 1% of vaccine demand, and local vaccine production and development in low- and middle-income countries is urgent." Tunisia was also selected as a beneficiary country of the mRNA technology transfer in the African region on February 18. Minister Mrabet expressed hope that "through mRNA technology transfer, improving access to high-quality medical products will help achieve comprehensive health coverage and address health issues."

Meanwhile, Vice Minister Park also presented on South Korea's COVID-19 response process since the first outbreak in January 2020. He evaluated, "Through various quarantine measures, South Korea overcame the crisis well without lockdowns," and "achieved a high vaccination rate globally."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.