"Rapid Vaccine Development in a Pandemic"...Joint Table-Top Exercise on February 5-6

Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, KDCA, CEPI, and IVI Join to Explore Vaccine Development Response Strategies

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency announced that they will conduct a two-day table-top exercise (TTX) on February 5 and 6 at the Seoul Royal Park Convention to explore South Korea's vaccine development and authorization strategies in preparation for a pandemic crisis.

This table-top exercise assumes a scenario in which patients with an infectious disease caused by Disease X (a hypothetical severe infectious disease that could be caused by a currently unknown pathogen defined by the World Health Organization) occur in South Korea. Based on this scenario, the exercise aims to share response measures for crisis situations focusing on the end-to-end response system from securing the pathogen through to vaccine development and authorization, and to explore future directions for advancement.

In particular, this exercise is the first joint table-top exercise participated in by domestic and international organizations such as the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and the International Vaccine Institute (IVI). It is expected to serve as an opportunity to practically assess national vaccine development and regulatory capabilities, as well as international cooperation systems, for pandemic response.

Through this exercise, the government plans to: ▲ review the division of roles and cooperation structure between the public and private sectors; ▲ identify bottlenecks in the linkage process between vaccine development, clinical trials, authorization, and production; and ▲ advance international cooperation and the national infectious disease crisis management system to enable rapid vaccine supply in a pandemic situation.

Oh Yu-kyung, Commissioner of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, said, "This exercise is meaningful in that it comprehensively examines the capabilities needed for rapid vaccine development and authorization under an assumed real crisis situation, and seeks directions for further advancement," adding, "The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety will continue to enhance its regulatory response system so that vaccines can be authorized and released quickly and safely even in public health crises, based on cooperation with international organizations and relevant agencies."

Lim Seung-kwan, Commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, said, "In pandemic response, the rapid development and supply of vaccines is a national task directly linked to the lives of the people and a core element of national security," and added, "This joint table-top exercise with the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, CEPI, and IVI will serve as an important opportunity to review the vaccine development and regulatory linkage system so that it operates seamlessly even in infectious disease crisis situations, and to elevate South Korea's capabilities to the next level."