Malaysia should make own halal vaccines

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, June 12 (UPI) -- Calls are increasing for Malaysia to produce its own vaccines and be less dependent on foreign imports.

Should an influenza pandemic hit worldwide, countries that are major drug producers may not want to share their supplies, the daily Malaysian Star reported Tuesday.

"For Malaysia, it is not only about providing halal vaccine but also to be self-reliant," Health Ministry Director General Ismail Merican said Tuesday, according to the newspaper. "When it (the flu pandemic) happens in any part of world, I do not think those countries are going to share vaccines with us.... In that kind of situation, if we do not have the capacity to produce the vaccine, then we are in serious trouble. That is why we are so obsessed," Merican added.

The daily also said Malaysia's National Institute of Natural Products, Vaccines and Biologicals should be producing vaccines within the next two years for diseases such as polio, tetanus, and diphtheria. All vaccines will be halal.