It has completed production of the ninth batch of human rabies vaccine and the vaccine can be sent to public hospitals for trial on human beings after receiving approval for its 10th batch from the World Health Organization (WHO). The vaccine should first be approved by WHO´s laboratory in France before it is sent for trial on human beings. [break]
"We have already completed the ninth batch of production. We will send the ninth batch samples to the WHO after getting the report of the eighth batch," Dr J N Rai, consultant at the laboratory, said. "It will take more than two months to get the report from the WHO lab," Deputy Coordinator of the National Zoonosis Program Narayan Shah said.
But Rai was bullish about getting the WHO approval for even the ninth batch of the vaccine which, he claims, is advanced. "We have used the latest reagents and kits recommended by the WHO, and we have been careful about quality control," Dr Rai claimed.
The government purchases 200,000 vials of human rabies vaccines that cost more than hundred million rupees every year. The laboratory has already made the animal´s rabies vaccine which is commercially sold in the market. While the imported animal vaccine costs over Rs 250 per vial, the Nepal made costs just Rs 45.
Nepal requires over 200,000 vials of animal vaccines every year but the laboratory can produce just 20,000-30,000 due to lack of infrastructure and manpower and has to import the rest.
Dr Rai, who has been working as consultant on government´s request following his retirement, claimed Nepal can even export the animal vaccines with adequate government support. He said the Sri Lankan government has already expressed its interest to import the vaccines from Nepal.
"Due to the lack of manpower we cannot make for ourselves. If the government invests more on manpower and infrastructure we can export it," he said.
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