Jakarta (ANTARA) - Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin has expressed his gratefulness to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) for supporting national polio vaccine production, thereby protecting Indonesian children from the risk of disability and death due to the disease.
"BMGF has helped (state-owned pharmaceutical company) Biofarma with almost US$100 thousand to develop the infrastructure needed to produce polio vaccines and to supply polio vaccines to the world," he said in a statement released on Monday.
He delivered the remarks after reviewing the production of the vaccines — which are vital for public health — at Biofarma's vaccine production facility in Bandung, West Java, with the president of the foundation's global development division, Christopher Elias.
According to the minister, the support from BMGF has not only had an impact on Indonesia, but has also played an important role in addressing global challenges related to the eradication of polio and other diseases.
"Thank you for the contribution that has been given to Indonesia and Biofarma," Sadikin said.
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He further said that Monday's visit marked an important step in strengthening collaboration to realize a healthier Indonesia that is free from infectious diseases.
Meanwhile, Elias expressed pride over the collaboration between BMGF and the Indonesian government through Biofarma, especially for the development and production of the polio vaccine.
He said that Indonesia has made extraordinary progress in the development of vaccines, including the polio vaccine.
He informed that since the polio vaccine produced by Biofarma was approved for use by the World Health Organization in 2000 and declared to meet international standards, as many as one billion doses have been sent to more than 35 countries in the world.
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"This is a vaccine that has helped us eradicate polio in the world," he said.
This shows that Biofarma has played an important role in overcoming global challenges related to the eradication of polio and other diseases, he added.
Elias said that Biofarma has also become a strategic partner in providing vaccines in Indonesia and other developing countries.
