A pioneering fictional pandemic simulation exercise will be held in the Republic of Korea by the Korean Government, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) to explore opportunities to strengthen Korean readiness to rapidly develop and test new vaccines in the event of a future pandemic threat.
The tabletop exercise is the first of its kind to be held in Korea and the region with the Government’s Ministry of Food Drug & Safety (MFDS), a World Health Organization-listed regulatory authority, and the world-leading Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
The meeting will bring together several expert organisations based in Korea working across pandemic preparedness—from threat detection through to licensure of life-saving medical tools—to simulate a realistic scenario imagining that a never-seen-before fictitious deadly virus is spreading fast and infecting people. Using skills, knowledge and plans developed during COVID-19 and in the years since the pandemic, attendees will be invited to discuss how they would work together across research and development, manufacturing and other parts of the vaccine chain to improve readiness and identify bottlenecks ahead of a potential health emergency.
The exercise will enhance Korea’s real-world response readiness by strengthening the scientific, regulatory and manufacturing capabilities needed to rapidly develop new vaccines against emerging epidemic and pandemic threats.
The objective is to increase pandemic preparedness at a country level to enable a response that is rapid, granular and tailored to local needs – while also strengthening resilience at regional and global levels.
