September 2, 2024, SEOUL, Korea – The International Vaccine Institute (IVI), an international organization headquartered in Seoul with a mission to discover, develop, and deliver safe, effective, and affordable vaccines for global health, kicked off its 23rd annual International Vaccinology Course (IVC) today. 186 trainees representing 39 different nationalities are participating in the five-day intensive course at three locations in the countries that host an IVI office: Headquarters in Seoul, Korea; Stockholm, Sweden in partnership with Karolinska Institutet; and Kigali, Rwanda in partnership with the University of Rwanda.

The theme for this year’s course is Vaccine to Vaccination: from Science to Society, and all three sites are broadcasting live lectures across the fundamentals of vaccinology and the process of creating vaccines—how they are developed, tested, regulated, and approved—while emphasizing their ultimate utility: vaccination.

Dr. Jerome Kim, Director General of IVI, said: “We are proud that IVI’s International Vaccinology Course has trained nearly 5,000 vaccine professionals worldwide since 2000, fulfilling a core tenet of IVI’s mandate to not only discover, develop, and deliver vaccines but to help build the global workforce and infrastructure that enables their production and use. As the emergence and spread of new and persistent infectious diseases continue to rise, it is crucial to strengthen efforts that advance affordable and equitable vaccine access and global capacity. This training program is vital for building a global network of highly skilled vaccine professionals.”

An expert faculty of lecturers from the public and private sectors of global health, including international organizations, government agencies, foundations and funding entities, vaccine manufacturing companies, and universities will deliver 17 lectures that cover the challenges and opportunities across vaccine use, vaccine market-shaping, sustainable supply, and public confidence. 75 trainees are participating in Seoul including 13 Vaccinology Fellows who received competitive fully funded fellowships to attend the course.

Dr. Hee Soo Kim, Deputy Director General of IVI’s Clinical, Assessment, Regulatory, and Evaluation unit and this year’s Course Director, said: “Expanding this year’s course to three locations in Asia, Europe, and Africa aligns with the goals of IVI’s regional offices based in Sweden and Rwanda as well as the IVC’s founding aim to equip healthcare professionals and researchers around the world with current and practical skills in vaccine science. We thank Karolinska Institutet and the University of Rwanda for their partnership in co-hosting the course at their respective locations. This collaborative initiative is essential for enhancing capacity and vaccine self-sufficiency in regions most affected by disease outbreaks.”

Prof.  Kayihura Muganga Didas, Ag.Vice Chancellor of the University of Rwanda, said: “We are thrilled to co-host this year’s IVC as a result of not only the recently established partnership between IVI and UR, but also the recognition of the work being done at the UR’s East African Community Regional Centre of Excellence for Vaccines, Immunization and Health Supply Chain Management (EAC RCE-VIHSCM). At UR, we are committed to support Rwanda’s vision to become a vaccines manufacturing hub by training and producing the required workforce in the field.”

Prof. Anna Norrby-Teglund, Head of Unit at the Center for Infectious Medicine at the Department of Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, said: “I am very pleased that IVI’s international vaccinology course has now become an annual event at Karolinska Institutet. This initiative strengthens our global collaboration for better health and provides us with a unique opportunity to work with international experts and train future vaccine specialists. I look forward to exciting lectures and rewarding discussions during the course.”

This year’s course is sponsored by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), Moderna, Sanofi, Valneva, East African Community Regional Center of Excellence, SK bioscience, EuBiologics, Hilleman Laboratories, Karolinska Institutet, and the University of Rwanda. Through their support, IVI awarded Vaccinology Fellowships to 30 trainees demonstrating leadership potential in their home countries and institutions, enabling them to participate in the course in Seoul or Kigali. Moreover, 30 participants from African countries were sponsored by the East African Community Regional Center of Excellence to attend the Kigali site, and 14 participants from India, the Philippines, and Thailand received scholarships to join the Seoul site through the core contributions to IVI provided by their respective governments, which are strong supporters of IVI’s mission and initiatives.

Established in 2000, IVI’s International Vaccinology Course (IVC) is one of Asia’s longest-running vaccinology programs, contributing to the education of scientists working to accelerate the development of safe, effective, and affordable vaccines.

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About the International Vaccine Institute (IVI)
The International Vaccine Institute (IVI) is a non-profit international organization established in 1997 at the initiative of the United Nations Development Programme with a mission to discover, develop, and deliver safe, effective, and affordable vaccines for global health.

IVI’s current portfolio includes vaccines at all stages of pre-clinical and clinical development for infectious diseases that disproportionately affect low- and middle-income countries, such as cholera, typhoid, chikungunya, shigella, salmonella, schistosomiasis, hepatitis E, HPV, COVID-19, and more. IVI developed the world’s first low-cost oral cholera vaccine and a new-generation typhoid conjugate vaccine, both pre-qualified by the World Health Organization (WHO).

IVI is headquartered in Seoul, Republic of Korea with a Europe Regional Office in Stockholm, Sweden and Collaborating Centers in Ghana, Ethiopia, and Madagascar. Forty-two countries and the WHO are members of IVI, and the governments of the Republic of Korea, Sweden, India, Finland, Austria and Thailand provide state funding. For more information, please visit https://www.ivi.int.