[Unpad Media Channel] Universitas Padjadjaran once again becomes one of the locations for vaccine technology learning for researchers from member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). This year, 22 researchers from 11 OIC’s countries came to the Unpad campus through the program of “COMSTECH Fellowship Program for Research and Advance Training in Virology and Vaccine Technologies”.
It is a collaboration program between Laboratory Central of Universitas Padjadjaran and PT Bio Farma. This program officially opens at Bale Sawala, Rectorate Building of Universitas Padjadjaran Jatinangor, Sumedang, Monday (15/7/2024). It is a third-batch program held in Indonesia. In her speech, the Rector of Unpad, Prof. Rina Indiastuti, said that the COMSTECH Fellowship Program is beneficial because it relates to the scientific context and strategic partnerships among countries, and it covers an international scope.
“This program is very relevant to Unpad because it is related to our current vision and mission,” said the Rector.
The Rector of Unpad said that the advanced training in virology and vaccine technologies that will be conducted in this program is very significant to the health sector, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia.
“After pandemic, we have many experience that we need many prototypes, many advanced research, many innovation in health sector, particularly in virology and vaccine,” she explained.
According to the Rector of Unpad, this training can help increase the researchers capacity and capability, particularly for the country members in developing any innovations to produce prototypes in health technology continuously and consistently.
“So, let’s increase our partnership among Islamic countries to this purpose,” she hoped.
The Marketing Director of PT Bio Farma, Dr. Kamelia Faisal, MARS., said that the COMSTECH Fellowship Program, which OKI countries participate in, has served as a beacon of global cooperation, fostering invaluable connections between promising scientists and healthcare regulators from Islamic countries.
“By coming together to share knowledge, experiences, and expertise, we are not only enriching ourselves but also contributing to the greater gulf of advancing in healthcare and combating infectious diseases on a global scale,” explained Kamelia.
Moreover, Kamelia said that the knowledge and skills acquired by training participants during the program can contribute to the advancement of healthcare in their respective countries.
“By enriching participants with opportunities for collaboration in the field of virology or vaccine technology, the programs will play a crucial role in fostering international cooperation and knowledge exchange in these critical areas,” she explained.
The Directorate General of Multilateral Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Republic of Indonesia Tri Tharyat said that Central Laboratory is a perfect partner for PT Bio Farma in contributing to making Indonesia a regional hub for vaccine research and production and distribution. WHO appoints PT Bio Farma as one of the beneficiaries of RNA vaccine technology transfer, striving for excellence to ensure vaccine independence in Indonesia.
“It is my hope this training at Universitas Padjararan will expand your knowledge and competency in research and development of biology and vaccine technology,” explained Tri.
Enrich Knowledge
In this program, 22 participants from 11 countries attend as the participants of the program, two of them are Malaysia and Uganda.
In an interview with Unpad Media Channel, Dr. Nurulfiza Mat Isa from the Universiti Putra Malaya, Malaysia, said that this is the second time Malaysia has participated in the COMSTECH Fellowship Program. After this program, Nurulfiza hopes to gain more experience in terms of industrial training.
“I believe that this program, in such a way, to tailor with the industrial perspective, which we attach to the biopharmaceutical company, which is the Bio Farma. Of course, I wish to learn a lot from this university,” she hoped.
Mwambi Bashar, a participant from the International Health Sciences University, Uganda said that this program can help participants understand to implement research findings into practice.
“Here in a university, we can see there’s a lot of integration of the starting of science and then implementation and production. So, this is really an eye-opener,” said Mwambi.
This program is part of the “Internship COMSTECH-OIC Fellowship Programme”, which will be held at the Central Laboratory (OIC Central of Excellence for Halal Vaccine on Biotechnology) of Unpad from July 15th to July 25th, 2024. (arm/SA)*
