Children of Southeast Asia who are at risk of acquiring the contagious Japanese encephalitis can look forward to being immunized next year with a vaccine from China, a senior official of the World Health Organization said.

Zhang Li of the public-private international health partnership said the Chinese vaccine, which was the first to get the prequalification from WHO in October 2013, met the international standards for safety, quality and efficiency, and may soon be included in the worldwide vaccine supply.

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Zhang told the media that the vaccine applications were already sent to impoverished countries, particularly in Southeast Asia, that have a yearly per capita income lower than US$1550.

Zhang said the first batch of feedback about the vaccines had already been received, but the process of purchasing it has yet to start.

The process of application to get the vaccine will end in May, and UNESCO will procure the medicine from the Chengdu Institute of Biological Products.

The final information about the vaccine, as well as the names of countries that are eligible to obtain it, will be announced in the latter part of May.

Zhang added that children living in eligible countries will be vaccinated for free. Also, the senior manager said that group purchases could be reduced significantly for developing countries.

Managing director Ge Yonghong of the Chengdu Institute of Biological Products said production capacity for the vaccine was boosted during the prequalification process.

He said it took them seven years to obtain the prequalification from WHO, but it signals the worldwide debut of China-made vaccines.

Doctors define Japanese encephalitis as a disease that can strike swiftly and it normally leaves a terrible impact on children as well as their families.

One in four recorded cases of the disease could be deadly.