IPH going to produce vaccines, saline, blood bags
The Institute of Public Health (IPH) plans to produce vaccines, saline and blood collection bags on its existing premises in the city’s’ Mohakhali area.
The estimated cost is Tk115-Tk116 crore for vaccine production and Tk15-Tk22 crore for saline. The Development Project Proposals, DPP for blood collection bags has been finalised. The IPH targets annual production of 1.5 million anti-rabies vaccine doses and 250,000-500,000 blood bags.
The institute is preparing separate Development Project Proposals (DPPs) for the three products and has asked the Public Works Department (PWD) to include new buildings and production infrastructure in the proposals.
Dr Syed Abu Ahammad Shafi, Director of the IPH, told the reporters that the institute initially plans to restart vaccine production with anti-rabies shots. Production could begin within two and a half to three years, subject to necessary support and approvals.
The government requires around three million doses of anti-rabies vaccine annually for human use but depends on private suppliers, whose supplies often fall short.
The IPH previously produced vaccines using tissue culture technology but plans to adopt modern methods. Once the plant is established, production could begin within 18 months to two years, or two and a half years at the latest, he said.
The facility could eventually accommodate other vaccines with additional government funding, although specialised laboratories and separate technologies would be required.
The IPH previously produced an average of 8,000 saline bags daily before suspending production in 2020 for failing to meet World Health Organisation requirements.
It now plans to renovate the existing facility at Tk15-Tk22 crore, which it expects to support another 10 years of production. The main expenses will cover a Biosafety Level 2 system, infrastructure upgrades and equipment. The saline DPP is being finalised.
The blood bag DPP has been completed and will be submitted soon. Production will target 250,000-500,000 bags annually, based on government hospitals’ requirements.
The IPH plans to avoid acquiring new land. Of its original 47.88 acres, portions were allocated to the Bangladesh Medical Research Council, Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research, Directorate General of Drug Administration, Expanded Programme on Immunisation and Institute of Public Health Nutrition.
IPH technicians have Biosafety Level 2 and Level 3 experience, including handling polio and other viruses. Former employees could also provide technical assistance. Existing licences could be reactivated once the new facilities meet the required conditions.
In a letter to the PWD chief engineer on 26 October, the IPH requested that new buildings and production infrastructure be included in the DPPs.
It said the institute had produced vaccines against smallpox, cholera, rabies and tetanus, as well as cholera, normal and baby saline, Hartmann’s solution and blood collection bags since 1953. Production suspensions had deprived the public of these government-provided supplies.
The letter also cited the Planning Commission’s decision to expand domestic vaccine production under a proposed project to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response through a One Health approach.
During a 17 October visit, Director General of the Directorate General of Health Services Professor Dr Prabhat Chandra Biswas also stressed restarting vaccine production to strengthen pandemic response capacity.
State Minister for Health Dr MA Muhit told the reporters that the government wanted vaccine self-sufficiency. Covid-19 had shown that vaccines could remain difficult to procure even with sufficient funds during global shortages, he said.