Request for Proposals: Training Award for Vaccine Manufacturing

The goal of the Training Award (TA) is to train participants from LMICs in vaccine and biomanufacturing knowledge and practical skills. To achieve this goal, the Training Award will provide funding for 8-week vaccine manufacturing training course to be delivered by the Korea National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (K-NIBRT) in Incheon, Korea. The course content focuses on the foundational principles of vaccine manufacturing involved in major vaccine platforms including mRNA, GMP requirements and quality control.

The RIGHT Foundation is a Korean non-profit organization supported by the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare, Korean life science companies, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. RIGHT Foundation aims to alleviate the burden of infectious diseases that disproportionately affect the people in low and middle-income countries.

Key Training Objectives

• Enhanced knowledge of biopharmaceutical manufacturing processes
• Practical, hands-on skills in how to operate specialized equipment used in vaccine manufacturing
• Knowledge of Good Manufacturing Practices
• Enhanced knowledge of regulatory process and key aspect of regulatory requirements in general including WHO Prequalification procedure related to biomanufacturing

Training Content

• The online learning (didactic) portion of the training aims to provide participants with an understanding of the fundamental principles of manufacturing major vaccine types: inactivated vaccines, live attenuated vaccines, protein subunit vaccines, nanoparticle vaccines, vectored vaccines, mRNA vaccines, and DNA vaccines. The hands-on training will focus on the capacity necessary for mRNA vaccine production process while it will include most of the processes for other major vaccine types.
• Didactic training
  • Basics for biopharmaceuticals and bioprocessing
  • Vaccine manufacturing bioprocessing
  • Regulatory process for biopharmaceuticals
• Hands-on training for vaccine bioprocess
  • Fermentation
  • Purification
  • Finalization
  • Analysis
  • Utilities and packaging

Training Format

• Online learning: All participants will attend the didactic training online (15 days, 3 weeks). The online learning will consist of recorded lectures, followed by an additional one-week period reserved for live Q&A sessions conducted through Zoom meetings.
• Hands-on training: Trainees will participate in interactive and hands-on training in groups of up to 10 trainees (25 days, 5 weeks). After the online lectures, the hands-on practical training will be conducted off-line for 5 weeks at the K-NIBRT campus in Incheon, Korea. The 5-week off-line training course runs from Monday to Friday.

Scope of Support

• Up to 40 qualified personnel from LMICs will receive the 8-week training by K-NIBRT in May to July 2024 and the course is free of charge. During the offline, hands-on training at K-NIBRT, participants will be accommodated in single rooms at the dormitory on the Songdo Campus of Yonsei University in Incheon, Korea.
• The Training Award will be fully covered by the RIGHT Foundation including round-trip airfare to Korea, visa application fees, course fees, accommodation, and meals for the duration of the course.

Training Institution

• Korea National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (K-NIBRT)
• K-NIBRT is the premier vaccine industry training institution located at Yonsei University Songdo Campus in the Republic of Korea, and it combines the expertise of government, academia, and industry. K-NIBRT is also equipped with a GMP-compliant public training center for hands-on training through the entire cycle of biopharmaceutical production.
• Constructed in 2021, the K-NIBRT facility includes a fermentation room, an animal cell culture room, a purification room, a drug substance room with aseptic techniques of clean system, and the full range of bioprocessing equipment.

Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants must be individuals from LMICs who currently hold positions directly related to vaccine manufacturing, including but not limited to technicians, engineers, scientists, managers in the private or public sectors, and have the potential to serve as trainers in their home countries.
• Applicants are required to have the following qualifications to be considered eligible for the course.
  • Nationality and Residency: Nationals or citizens of LMICs who reside in an LMIC.
  • Educational Background: Hold either an associate’s degree from a two-year college or a bachelor’s degree from a university in a field related to the biopharmaceutical industry, such as biology, biological science, biochemistry, chemistry, or an equivalent qualification.
  • Work Experience: A minimum of five years of work experience in the vaccine and biopharmaceutical industry or equivalent experience in another relevant sector. Intermediate or higher-level experience in vaccine and biomanufacturing processes is considered an asset.
  • Relevant Position: Currently holds a position relevant to the training program, such as a technician, engineer, scientist, manager, or another relevant role in biomanufacturing or a related field.
  • Employment: Currently employed by a biomanufacturing company or a related institution registered as a legal entity in an LMIC.
  • English Proficiency: Proficiency in spoken and written English, sufficient for interactions with English speakers, or equivalent to IELTS score of 4.0-5.0 and a TOEIC score of 550- 780.

For more information, visit RIGHT Foundation.