Netherlands to help India develop, mass produce measles-rubella vaccine

The MoU will enable the Bharat Immunologicals and Biologicals Corporation Ltd (BIBCOL) to develop the Measles–Rubella vaccine at its plant in Bulandshahr, India. Translational Vaccinology (INTRAVACC) a government-based institute of the Netherlands will provide the technical support for the vaccine’s development.

M.K. Bhan, Chairman of BIBCOL said in a statement that the collaboration will pave the way for the manufacture of other high-quality, affordable vaccines for the Immunization Programmes of India and other developing countries in the world. 

The announcement comes as the WHO has warned that the elimination of measles worldwide has stalled. In India in particular, more than double the number children of any other country were not vaccinated against measles at 9 months of age.

And according to GAVI, a global vaccine alliance, the measles-rubella vaccine is considered safe and cost-effective at around 50 cents per dose.

Dr. Harshvardhan, Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences of India, added that the cooperation between the two countries will result in the large scale production of the measles-rubella vaccine as part of a plan to save hundreds of thousands of children from the diseases.