Japan's health ministry has decided to back domestic development of vaccines for eight types of infectious diseases, to avoid a shortage like the one experienced during the coronavirus pandemic.

Japan at one time had a serious shortage of coronavirus vaccines, because domestic pharmaceutical companies were not as successful as those overseas in developing them.

On Wednesday, the ministry conferred with a panel of experts regarding the government's plan to back domestic development of vaccines for diseases that are highly transmissible among humans but lack effective vaccines.

In addition to the H1N1 flu and the coronavirus, the ministry hopes to prepare vaccines for monkeypox, which is spreading mostly in Europe and North America, Zika fever, which is said to trigger microcephaly, and four other infectious diseases. The panel approved the plan.

The ministry will invite pharmaceutical firms and research institutions to carry out development projects.

The projects will be funded by the Strategic Center of Biomedical Advanced Vaccine Research and Development for Preparedness and Response, which the government set up in March this year.