Viet Nam approves three new vaccines for use

They include Qdenga against dengue fever, Shingrix against shingles, and Shingrix Pneumovax 23 against 23 types of pneumococcal bacteria.

All three vaccines are produced by the world's large pharmaceutical companies, namely Takeda of Japan, GSK of Belgium, and MSD of the U.S.

Currently, the three vaccines are used in the national vaccination program.

So far, 40 types of vaccines and biological products have been licensed to circulate nationwide.

Millions of children in Viet Nam have been protected by immunization over the past 40 years, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF offices in Viet Nam.

The number of children dying from vaccine-preventable causes in Viet Nam has been reduced significantly since 1981, when Viet Nam introduced the national immunization program–the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI)–with the aim to ensure that every child in Viet Nam can receive the lifesaving protection of routine immunizations.

Thank to the program, Viet Nam has eradicated smallpox and polio, eliminated neonatal tetanus, and dramatically reduced other vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles, diphtheria, pertussis, and Japanese encephalitis, by immunizing millions of children.

UNICEF Viet Nam Representative Rana Flowers said, Viet Nam's immunization program has been instrumental in saving children's lives and alleviating the devastating impact of vaccine-preventable diseases on families, communities and the country as a whole for over 40 years./.