Republic of Korea First Lady hails IVI’s collaborative program for children in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

Dignitaries and IVI staff following an official ceremony marking the 10th
Anniversary of the Institute at the IVI headquarters in Seoul on October 17.

The IVI, the world’s only international organization devoted exclusively to the research and development of new vaccines for developing countries, commemorated its 10th Anniversary on October 17.

Prof. Ragnar Norrby (left), Chairman of the IVI Board of Trustees,
awards Prof. Yoo Chong-ha, former Minister of Foreign Affairs, with
a plaque to acknowledge his contribution to the establishment of the Institute.

The IVI hosted a ceremony and a gala marking the historic occasion at the IVI headquarters in Seoul. The ceremony drew more than 150 participants, including Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and other senior government officials from the Republic of Korea; foreign diplomats in Seoul; special dignitaries from Spain and Kuwait, including Chairwoman of the Ideal Mother Committee, Sheikha Fariha Al-Sabah and the IVI’s Global Goodwill Ambassador, Alyaa Moussa; and members of the IVI Board of Trustees, including its Chairman, Prof. Ragnar Norrby.

In his congratulatory video message for the ceremony, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called the IVI “a pioneering center for research.” “For 10 years, the IVI promoted dynamic interactions among scientists and developers from Asia and elsewhere.” Mr. Ban said. “The IVI played a unique role in vaccine research, development, training, technical assistance, and information sharing,” noting its complementary roles with the World Health Organization.

Dr. John Clemens (left), Director-General of the IVI, shakes hands
with Mr. Kim Moon-young, Chairman of Contron Corp., as he presents
a plaque to acknowledge the company´s financial contribution to the IVI
on the occasion of the IVI´s 10th Anniversary.

Korea´s First Lady, Madame Kwon Yang-suk, who serves as the Honorary President of the Korea Support Committee for the IVI, said in her video message that “Protecting our children from diseases is protecting humanity’s future. Diseases have no national borders, and our efforts to combat these diseases must also be free of boundaries.” She called for “greater medical cooperation between the IVI and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”

Violinist Lee Sang-hee (far left) stages a special performance with
children to congratulate the IVI on the occasion of its 10th Anniversary.

Prime Minister Han said, “The Korean government will extend all possible support to ensure that the IVI, the first international organization hosted by Korea, seamlessly carries out its mission as a center for global vaccine research.” He urged the Institute to double efforts in narrowing the gap in the availability of vaccines between developed and developing countries, based on its past achievements. 

Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo delivers a congratulatory
speech at the IVI´s 10th Anniversary ceremony.

At the ceremony three Korean citizens were honored with plaques for their contribution to the founding of the IVI. These honorees were: Prof. Cho Wan-kyoo, former chairman of the Organizing Committee for the IVI; Prof. Yoo Chong-ha, former Minister of Foreign Affairs; and Mr. Suh Bum-suk, former Vice Minister of Education. The following five companies were also awarded with plaques for their donations to the Institute: Contron Corp., Green Cross Corporation, National Agricultural Cooperative Federation’s Seoul National University Branch, STC Group, and the Korea Exchange Bank Foundation.

IVI Director-General’s speech at the IVI 10th Anniversary ceremony

Honorable Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea,
Sheikha Fariha Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Chairman of the Supreme Committee of the Ideal Mother for the Special Family
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests and Colleagues:

I welcome you to this august ceremony to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the founding of the International Vaccine Institute (IVI).

In the early 1990s, the concept of an international vaccine institute was created by the United Nations Development Programme. Korea, with its thriving scientific infrastructure and an expressed desire to repay the world for all the financial and humanitarian assistance it had received during and after the Korean war, won an intense international competition to host the IVI.  In 1997 the IVI officially came into being as an autonomous international organization.

Today the IVI is the world’s only international organization exclusively devoted to research on new vaccines for developing countries. It has the privilege of being situated on the campus of Seoul National University, which has been such an important supporter and partner over the years.

From a fledging organization in 1997, the IVI is now a major international organization with 41 signatories to its Charter, including 40 countries and the World Health Organization. The IVI now has over 130 staff from 19 countries, and occupies this magnificent headquarters building with state-of-the-art laboratories, generously donated by the Republic of Korea. Our annual budget has grown to US$26 million this year.

This growth, while rapid, has been strategic. The IVI has chosen to focus on vaccines for diseases that are major public health problems in developing countries and for which the IVI’s contributions are needed. These targeted diseases include diarrhea, bacterial meningitis, bacterial pneumonia, Japanese encephalitis and dengue fever. Together these diseases cause about 4 million deaths among the world’s children each year.

How has the IVI contributed to the fight against these diseases? The IVI’s work in the field, including clinical trials of vaccines, epidemiologic studies, and economic and policy analyses, has been carried out in 22 developing countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. This work has provided critical evidence that country policymakers have used to make real-life decisions about introducing new vaccines into their countries.

This work in the field has been complemented by outstanding accomplishments in our laboratories. Although our laboratory program is only three years old, IVI scientists have already developed three new or improved vaccines against cholera and typhoid fever, and all of these vaccines are in the process of being transferred to vaccine producers in the developing world, so that they can be made available inexpensively to the poor.

Our scientists have recently developed the first ever animal model of Shigella colitis, which will be needed to develop new vaccine candidates against shigellosis, a disease that may kill up to 1 million children annually. And with sophisticated molecular tools, our scientists have recently helped to identify a new form of cholera, with increased virulence, which is currently ravaging poor populations in Africa and Asia.

Critical to translating our research into sustainable progress for developing countries has been the IVI’s extensive program of capacity-building. For example, our course on Advanced Vaccinology for the Asia-Pacific Region, now in its seventh consecutive year, attracted 73 participants from 22 developing countries this year.

What will the future bring?  We plan to expand our activities geographically. Recently, we initiated work in North Korea. And we are now poised to launch new projects in mainland Tanzania, Zanzibar, and Ghana. We will also launch new programs of laboratory research in our new high containment Biosafety Level 3+ laboratories, now under construction on the fourth floor of our headquaters building, with generous support from the Korean government. This wonderful new facility will allow our scientists to participate in the global search for effective vaccines against avian influenza and tuberculosis.

Several benefactors have made the success story of the IVI possible. Chief among them is the Government of Korea, which has steadfastly supported the IVI over the years. The First Lady of Korea, Mrs. Kwon Yang-suk, has generously contributed to the IVI as Honorary President of the Korea Support Committee for the IVI. Other countries have stepped up to provide core support as well, including Sweden and Kuwait. Philanthropic foundations have also played a key role. In this regard, special recognition goes to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has provided over US$100 million to the IVI. Industry has become a major partner and supporter of the IVI and more recently, members of the Korean public have made generous contributions.

Once again, I would like to thank you all for being here today. I know that when a ceremony is convened to celebrate the next 10 years of the IVI’s contributions, the IVI will have continued to have made a difference for the world’s poor.