Indonesia seeks Hungarian vaccine

Indonesia is interested in producing a Hungarian prototype human bird flu vaccine amid fears of outbreaks of the deadly virus in dozens of countries.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda said here on Thursday that Indonesia was exploring the possibility of getting a license to locally produce the Hungarian prototype human bird flu vaccine.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono asked him to look into the possibility of obtaining a license for the local production of such a vaccine, he added.

Hungary's Minister of Health Jeno Racz said last week countries, including the United States, Britain and Indonesia, had expressed an interest in the prototype, set to be approved by the European Medicines Agency.

He was quoted by AFP as saying Hungary's prototype human vaccine is effective against the deadly H5N1 strain.

Racz said tests on some 150 volunteers had shown the vaccine to be effective "beyond doubt", with all volunteers developing antibodies to the disease.

Hassan also said Indonesia would ask that Avian Flu issues be discussed at an APEC Summit next month in South Korea.

Separately, Hassan stated that the supply of Tamiflu, an antiviral drug produced by Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche and used to treat those with bird flu, was limited due to high demand following outbreaks of bird flu in Europe.

"It's not easy to get Tamiflu now. It's fully booked until 2007," he said. --JP