The OIE World Fund has worldwide experience in the management of vaccine banks and the delivery of vaccines for Avian Influenza (AI), Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD), Rabies (vaccination of dogs), and Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR), supported financially to date respectively by Canada (AI), the European Union (AI, FMD and Rabies), France (Rabies), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (PPR). These vaccine banks are established through international calls for tender and selection procedures involving independent committees composed of international renowned experts and donor representatives.

When high-quality vaccines, complying with international standards, are provided free of charge to developing countries at the airport of destination (the cost of vaccines and transportation are covered by the Vaccine Banks), the beneficiary country can concentrate its efforts and limited resources on implementing the vaccination campaigns (in-kind contribution and mobilisation of scarce human, financial and technical resources, such as staff for vaccination, cold chain transport and storage if required, and vaccination consumables), or on contracting public/private partnerships with selected NGOs.  The use of the vaccine bank mechanism creates incentives and leverage effects towards the progressive ownership of and effective implementation of animal disease control programmes.

The OIE has developed a new concept of Vaccine Bank which creates virtual rolling stocks: the suppliers (selected OIE compliant vaccine production companies) produce the vaccines when needed or they remain with the suppliers at their own risk and are renewed on a rolling basis under terms and conditions contractually defined with the OIE. This revised concept enables the rapid supply of emergency stock of vaccines to infected countries, as well as planned deliveries at a lower cost, in order to vaccinate targeted animal populations at risk and to progressively achieve eradication wherever possible.

Vaccine Bank contracts can also include more sophisticated financial and replenishment mechanisms with possible clauses for direct purchase or reimbursement by beneficiary countries (emerging or developed countries) or by international organisations and partners. In-kind donations (e.g. from countries) can also be collected / channelled to support global / regional control programmes.

In 2006, the OIE set up a Regional Vaccine Bank for Avian Influenza vaccines in Africa funded under the European Union Pan African Programme for the Control of Epizootics (PACE) and in 2007 also established a global vaccine bank for Avian Influenza vaccines funded by Canada (Canadian International Development Agency at that time).

Through these two mechanisms, a total of 62,017 million H5N2 doses were delivered to the following countries: Mauritania, Senegal, Egypt, Mauritius, Ghana, Togo and Vietnam. Egypt and Vietnam accounted for the most significant levels of distribution, with 28 million and 26.7 million doses respectively (including in kind donations of vaccines from the United Kingdom and Canada). At present, the Avian Influenza vaccine bank is empty.

The European Union funded Regional Cooperation Programme on Highly Pathogenic Emerging and Re-emerging animal diseases (HPED), which commenced in 2010, has seen the expansion of the OIE’s Vaccine Bank concept to Asia, in order to rapidly provide eligible countries with an emergency stock of vaccines to vaccinate animal populations at risk under the framework of agreed vaccination strategies, targeting Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) and rabies (vaccination of dogs).

The vaccines reserved for FMD are being used for strategic vaccination in buffer zones (ring vaccination)/ hot spots around disease-free areas in order to stop the spread of the disease, as well as to reduce the associated economic costs caused by the loss of FMD free status. Additional financial support has been received from Australia, New Zealand and the Republic of Korea for the procurement of FMD vaccines to eligible countries. This demonstrates the multi-donor approach supporting the concept of regional vaccine banks.

With reference to rabies, the OIE Regional Rabies Vaccine Bank for Asia supports the delivery of injectable rabies vaccines for dogs to eligible countries. In addition, support is also provided for the provision of oral rabies vaccines for selected pilot oral rabies vaccination campaigns of stray dogs (one pilot experiment to date). The elimination of rabies is both a public health and economic priority and, hence, preventing the spread of this zoonotic disease is essential in order to reduce the socio-economic cost of the post contamination treatment of humans. Dog vaccination against rabies is the only way to break the cycle of transmission among dogs and between dogs and humans.

In 2012, a PPR Vaccine Bank for Africa was established for the provision of high quality PPR vaccines to selected African countries. Funding support for the PPR Vaccine Bank for Africa is provided by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. This vaccine bank not only ensures the timely supply of high quality vaccines complying with international standards, but will also facilitate the harmonisation of PPR control methods in Africa.

The OIE’s provision of vaccines for an array of diseases signifies an important development to counter the spread of transboundary animal diseases globally.

        ************ Number of doses delivered as of September 2014 ************
        •    Rabies vaccine:     3 million doses to eligible countries in Asia
        •    FMD vaccine:     2.75 million doses to eligible countries in Asia
        •    PPR vaccine:     8.7 million doses1 to eligible countries in Africa *

        * Includes the direct purchase of 2 million doses of PPR vaccine by Togo