May 9, 2022

It’s no secret that the past two years have seen Bhutan make a name for itself on the world stage as one of the nations with the most effective pandemic response. In just one week in 2021, Bhutan managed to vaccinate 90% of its adult population in what UNICEF called, “arguably the fastest vaccination campaign to be executed during a pandemic.” Part of that success came as the result of a multifaceted partnership with Moderna Inc and the U.S. Government to provide 500,000 vaccines to Bhutan–a partnership that has led to a new opportunity to expand research capacity for public health to a new level.

Over the next two years, the Bhutan Foundation will support a partnership between Moderna and the Khesar Gyalpo University of Medical Sciences in Bhutan to conduct a study on the efficacy of vaccine mixing in adults and children from 12 to 17 years old. This project will help provide groundbreaking research on COVID-19 to help influence the future of vaccine efficacy worldwide. As part of this project, effective vaccine research capacity and pandemic preparedness in Bhutan will be strengthened through upgrades to lab technology and equipment, scientific training, and expanded international research collaboration on the most pressing public health issue.