The Chinese drug industry is on the verge of getting the green light to manufacture the Japanese encephalitis vaccine for the developing world, an event that will signal the emergence of a major new player in global vaccines.

Seth Berkley, chief executive of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI), said that by the beginning of next year Chinese drug firms will be ready for World Health Organization representatives to carry out pre-qualification inspections of production of the vaccine. Once those inspections are carried out, United Nations agencies and other non-governmental organisations will be able to purchase the vaccine for countries that do not have their own regulatory systems.

Berkley was speaking to …