Hwasun-gun Opens 'Vaccine Safety Technology Support Center'

Published 10 Nov.2022 14:56(KST)

[Hwasun=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Hyuk-jun] Jeollanam-do Hwasun-gun (Governor Gu Bok-gyu) announced on the 10th that it held an opening ceremony for the Vaccine Center at the Hwasun Vaccine Industry Special Zone together with the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (hereinafter referred to as MFDS) and Jeollanam-do.

Attending the opening ceremony were Governor Gu Bok-gyu, Jeollanam-do Governor Kim Young-rok, MFDS Bio-Pharmaceutical Bureau Director Kim Sang-bong, Food and Drug Safety Evaluation Institute Director Seo Kyung-won, Vaccine Practical Technology Development Project Group Secretary General Park Sung-ho, and Korea Regulatory Science Center Director Park Jung-tae.

The Vaccine Center, established in June 2020 as a non-profit foundation under the MFDS, supports the productization technology from domestic vaccine development to approval and authorization.

The Vaccine Center performs tasks such as analysis of vaccine clinical trial specimens, vaccine quality testing, distribution and management of vaccine production cell lines, one-on-one customized productization consulting, and providing information on domestic and international vaccine development trends.

The county expects that once the newly built Vaccine Center in the Hwasun Vaccine Industry Special Zone officially begins supporting vaccine productization, domestic vaccine development will become more active, and Hwasun will solidify its position as a bio-medical hub.

The Vaccine Center headquarters building, completed last month with a total budget of 26.3 billion KRW including 19.3 billion KRW in national funds and 7 billion KRW in local funds from MFDS, Jeollanam-do, and Hwasun-gun since 2019, is a two-story building with a total floor area of 3,970㎡.

The headquarters building is equipped with 480 pieces of 86 types of equipment capable of analyzing clinical trial specimens and conducting quality tests.

The Vaccine Center has established a professional training facility where practical training is possible to cultivate vaccine experts and support the overseas market entry of domestic vaccines.

The three-story education building with a total floor area of 4,800㎡, to be built next to the headquarters building, is scheduled for completion next year.

Once the education building is completed, it plans to lead the overseas expansion of the domestic vaccine industry by supporting vaccine approvals from WHO, the U.S. FDA, the European EMA, and others.

The Hwasun Vaccine Industry Special Zone is equipped with ‘full-cycle infrastructure for bio-new drugs’ including research and development (Chonnam National University Medical School), preclinical trials (KTR), clinical trials (Hwasun Chonnam National University Hospital), and product manufacturing (GC Green Cross Hwasun Plant, Biopharmaceutical Research Center, Microbial Validation Support Center, large-scale production facility for natural medicine raw materials).

With the opening of the Vaccine Center supporting product approval and authorization in the Hwasun Vaccine Industry Special Zone, Hwasun has taken a step forward as a bio-medical hub.

Governor Gu Bok-gyu said, “The Vaccine Center will contribute to the stable supply and self-sufficiency improvement of domestic vaccines and play a role in advancing Hwasun as a genuine bio-medical hub. We will continue to expand the infrastructure of the Hwasun Vaccine Industry Special Zone and attract advanced medical complex facilities to ensure Hwasun grows into a global vaccine and bio hub.”