Publication: ASEAN Capacity for Vaccine Research and Development and Production: Malaysia Country Case Study
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2023-06-16
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2023-06-16
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COVID-19 has devastated the ASEAN region, threatening two decades of human and economic development gains. With a population of more than 600 million, the region has reported more than 13 million COVID-19 cases as of October 2021, with Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand leading in number of confirmed cases. In the absence of effective treatment options, vaccination and preventative behaviors remain cornerstones for ASEAN governments to stop COVID-19’s spread, save lives, and revive economies. Despite rapid innovation and development of mRNA, viral vector, and protein subunit vaccine technology platforms, low and middle-income countries (LMICs) continue to struggle to access vaccines. ASEAN countries have remained net importers of essential vaccines, notwithstanding strong potential for local research and manufacture. Consequently, COVID-19 vaccination coverage varies widely, ranging from 10 percent in Myanmar to 80 percent in Singapore. These disparities render the region vulnerable to new variants, surges, and vaccine escape. To contain COVID-19 and respond to future pandemics, ASEAN must build strong regional capacity to develop, test, and scale up manufacture of vaccines, building on country-level strengths and avoiding duplication. Galvanizing ASEAN vaccine development and manufacturing efforts aligns with the November 2019 declaration of ASEAN leaders on regional vaccine security and self-reliance.
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“World Bank. 2023. ASEAN Capacity for Vaccine Research and Development and Production: Malaysia Country Case Study. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/40375 License: CC BY-NC 3.0 IGO.”
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Publication ASEAN Capacity for Vaccine Research and Development and Production(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-06-16)COVID-19 has had a devastating effect on the ASEAN region, which has recorded over 27 million cases of the virus. Access to COVID-19 vaccination has significantly reduced the spread of the disease and limited the number of severe COVID-19 cases, but it has also impacted routine immunization coverage. Countless strategies have been developed to ensure vaccine equity, which were swiftly translated from political assessment to practical action; however, they failed to address the sustained growth of the COVID-19 pandemic and the emergence of variants of concerns, requiring ongoing vaccine booster doses. 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ASEAN must build regional capacity to develop, test efficacy, and scale up manufacture of vaccines, building on existing country-level strengths and avoiding duplication. While some evidence on regional vaccine manufacturing capacity for ASEAN exists, there has been limited research on the technical, operational, financing and strategic partnership opportunities that exist in the region and might be leveraged to advance regional vaccine security. To address this knowledge gap, the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (UK FCDO) and the World Bank initiated the ASEAN Vaccine Development and Manufacturing Research Project. This project complements the ASEAN Vaccine Security and Self-Reliance (AVSSR) Initiative and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) 2021 plan, and supports the November 2019 declaration of ASEAN leaders on regional vaccine security and self-reliance.
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