IVI is pleased to announce that India will become a financially contributing member state, providing USD 500,000 per year to IVI. The Indian Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, recently approved the proposal. India will be the third member state to provide annual funding to the Institute, in addition to Korea and Sweden. The Indian funding will support IVI operations, vaccine R&D and capacity-building projects in India.
IVI and India have a long history of collaboration. In 2007, India became a signatory to IVI’s treaty that comprises of 35 signatory countries and the World Health Organization (WHO). For many years, IVI has been partnering with various Indian vaccine manufacturers, research institutes, government, and public health agencies such as Shantha Biotechnics, National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (NICED), and the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) on product development partnership, research, and training. One of the most successful collaborations was the development and WHO prequalification of the inactivated oral cholera vaccine, Shanchol, in 2011, the world’s first affordable oral cholera vaccine for global public health.
The new development will strengthen already close ties by promoting further synergies between IVI and India on vaccine development and public health research. The partnership will enable IVI to exert a greater impact in vaccine development and delivery, particularly in India. An official signing ceremony between the two parties is being planned. More information about the ceremony and agreement will follow soon.
