Tehran - Iran produces around 4 billion vaccine doses domestically each year, including 3.7 billion doses by the Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute, the institute’s head said.

 

Ali Morovvati said Iran’s annual vaccine demand stands at around 14 billion doses, stressing the need to align research with national needs and strengthen cooperation between research institutions and organizations that use their services.

 

He said upgrading Razi’s infrastructure could further boost production, but the institute faces challenges involving buildings, equipment, imported raw materials and access to technology, partly due to sanctions.

 

The official highlighted the benefits of locally produced vaccines, saying they are developed based on disease strains circulating in Iran and can therefore be better adapted to domestic needs than some imported vaccines.

 

He said aquatic animal vaccines are currently a priority for Razi, alongside efforts to increase poultry vaccine production.

 

Morovati also outlined the institute’s proposed “vaccine ecosystem,” based on the One Health approach, which aims to coordinate human and animal vaccine production, research, imports and distribution.

 

He said lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic showed the need for greater coordination, as various institutions pursued vaccine production independently. Razi, he added, seeks to play a central role in establishing an integrated system capable of responding more effectively to future disease outbreaks.