Asia-Pacific countries urged to strengthen vaccine development

MANILA, Philippines — Countries in Asia and the Pacific will need to strengthen cooperation in vaccine development and delivery systems to become better prepared for future pandemic threats, according to the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI).

In the book titled “From Lab to Jab: Improving Asia and the Pacific’s Readiness to Produce and Deliver Vaccines,” the ADB’s Tokyo-based think tank emphasized the need for coordinated efforts in vaccine development and delivery to build resilience and improve the region’s capacity to respond to a new pandemic threat.

During the 2019 COVID pandemic, it said equal access to vaccines was hampered by market failures, financing gaps, barriers to technology transfer, transport and logistical constraints, and capacity limitations.

“While Asia and the Pacific is well prepared to build up its regional capacity for vaccine manufacturing, regional cooperation will be very much needed to better weather the next pandemic,” ADBI dean Tetsushi Sonobe said.

As Asia and the Pacific is home to 60 percent of the world’s population, the region has significant demand for vaccines.

Despite this, most of the countries in this region do not have the capacity or technical know-how to produce vaccines, with many of them relying on imports to meet their domestic requirements.

While individual governments can play a role through advance purchase commitments, public investments and incentives for vaccine development, the ADBI underscored the importance of collective measures to address the various dimensions of vaccine development.

ADBI said cooperation among countries will be needed for prioritizing vaccine development based on collectively agreed criteria such as disease prevalence and burden, the potential for epidemic and pandemic spread, research and development (R&D) capacity, and financial viability.

It said countries could also work together in mapping regional needs and identifying financing gaps, devising regional strategies for vaccine research, as well as in establishing a regional research network for data and knowledge sharing.

To mobilize resources for financing vaccine R&D, ADBI said the region could create a regional financing facility.

ADBI also recommends pooled procurement among countries in the region to provide pharmaceutical companies a guaranteed market for newly developed vaccines.

“Such a pooled commitment at the regional level could incentivize vaccine R&D by reducing uncertainties about demand and serve as a coordination platform to prioritize R&D in vaccines and make investment decisions more predictable and transparent,” it said.

In terms of cross-border delivery of vaccines, ADBI said there is a need for countries in the region to review and eliminate tariffs and non-tariff measures on vaccines and related products to reduce the cost of importing vaccines, as well as delays.

“Countries must diversify their sources of imports for both vaccines and related inputs, given the potential vulnerabilities from overdependence on a few sources when there are supply chain disruptions and shocks,” ADBI said.

When it comes to national distribution of vaccines within countries, ADBI said strengthening health systems is key.

“This will require accelerating universal health coverage by expanding primary care, increasing public funding, and prioritizing populations in fragile contexts,” it said.