-Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden to visit and tour IVI facilities for the first time to see impact that IVI has around the globe -Sweden was among the first signatory countries of IVI when the Institute was founded in 1997, and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) has been a long-term donor to IVI since 2005 -Her Majesty has longstanding passion for charity, particularly in areas of disadvantaged children, as well as an international background May 31, Seoul, South Korea- Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden will visit the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) today as part of her and His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden’s official state visit to South Korea. Through her first visit to the Institute’s headquarters based at Seoul National University, Her Majesty Queen Sylvia will participate in the IVI program that includes a luncheon, a tour of the IVI facilities and laboratories, and a presentation session that gives an overview of the impact that IVI is currently having in underdeveloped countries around the globe. | IVI Director General, Dr. Christian Loucq (right), greets Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden, on her first visit to IVI headquarters. | | Her Majesty Queen Silvia has been tirelessly involved in many charities, with a particular focus on disadvantaged children. Furthermore, Her Majesty Queen Silvia has a strong international background. She lived in Brazil where one of IVI's field sites is located, and speaks six languages including: Swedish, German, Portuguese, French, Spanish and English. Her Majesty’s passion for aiding disadvantaged children and her marked international spirit have rendered her an important partner for IVI. "We are pleased to welcome Her Majesty Queen Silvia to IVI. Through our work in vaccines for the world's most vulnerable, IVI shares her humanitarian interest in ensuring the health and welfare of children around the world,” said IVI Director-General Dr. Christian Loucq. He added, "Our relationship with the government of Sweden has been longstanding and very significant to the fabric of IVI. We relish the opportunity to provide Her Majesty Queen Silvia with an interactive view of IVI, and we look forward to further cementing IVI’s partnership with Sweden." | Her Majesty Queen Silvia (second from right) of Sweden poses with IVI Director General, Dr. Christian Loucq (right); IVI Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Professor Ragnar Norrby (center); Professor Wan Kyoo Cho (second from left), Executive Advisor of the Korea Support Committee for IVI; and Ms. Maria Larsson (left), Minister for the Children and the Elderly, Ministry of Health and Social Affairs of Sweden. | | Sweden is currently one of IVI's 41 signatories, and has been a supporter of the organization since its establishment in 1997. Sweden originally provided the technology for an oral cholera vaccine developed through IVI. It is the first vaccine from IVI's vaccine development portfolio to be brought to market and to be prequalified by the World Health Organization. IVI, in collaboration with partners in Sweden, Vietnam and India, specifically developed a low-cost, safe, and effective cholera vaccine to fight this deadly disease in developing countries. The vaccine is currently being introduced in cholera-ravaged settings in countries such as Haiti, India, and Bangladesh. The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) has also been a key donor to IVI alongside the Korean Government and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Sida has provided support to many of the Institute's programs that include IVI's annual vaccinology course, now in its 12th year, that aims to strengthen the capacity of developing countries in the vaccine spectrum; typhoid surveillance studies in Africa; the development and publication of an investment case to support the global financing, stockpiling, and uptake of oral cholera vaccines; and the development of a new vaccine against typhoid fever and paratyphoid fever, two enteric diseases that affect many poorer countries. | Wearing tradiational Korean dress, or hanbok, children of IVI staff members greet Her Majesty Queen Silvia in IVI's lobby. | | About IVI The International Vaccine Institute (IVI) is the world's only international organization devoted exclusively to developing and introducing new and improved vaccines to protect the world's poorest people, especially children in developing countries. Established as an initiative of the United Nations Development Programme in 1997, IVI operates as an independent international organization under a treaty signed by 40 countries and the World Health Organization. The Institute conducts research in more than 30 countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America on vaccines against diarrheal infections, bacterial meningitis and pneumonia, as well as Japanese encephalitis and dengue fever, and develops new and improved vaccines at its headquarters in Seoul, Republic of Korea. For more information, please visit www.ivi.int |