Vaccine manufacturers meet in Indonesia to fight infectious diseases

The 13th annual meeting of developing countries vaccine manufacturers' network (DCVMN) is scheduled to be held in Indonesia's Bali province from Oct. 31 to Nov. 2 to fight against infectious diseases in developing countries, local media reported Thursday. "Infectious disease is still epidemic in many developing countries, prevention of spread can be can be achieved by increasing capacities of vaccines," said Rahman Rustan, Chairman of the meeting organizer. Rahman added that the meeting will also encourage vaccine research and development to promote availability and quality of vaccines for developing countries. DCVMN meeting is expected to be a strategic bridge for developing countries to jointly research and develop new vaccines and achieve the goal of healthier communities, he said. According to Rahman, the meeting will be attended by 37 vaccine manufacturers from 14 developing countries including China and India. The DCVMN was founded in 2000 and groups more than 40 members. As a voluntary and non-profit public health driven alliance of vaccine manufacturers from developing countries, DCVMN aims to make a consistent supply of quality vaccines that are accessible to developing countries.