New Delhi, Apr 10 (IANS): The Indian vaccine regulatory system has met the standards set by the World Health Organisation (WHO), health ministry officials said Tuesday.

A WHO-led team of international experts reviewed the National Regulatory Authority of India (NRA) and other affiliated institutions and decided that they meet WHO's indicators for a functional vaccine regulatory system, officials said.

"The Central Drugs Standard Control Organization in collaboration with WHO, has made exemplary efforts towards this achievement. The government of India has decided to further strengthen the central as well as the State Drugs Regulatory Systems," Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said.

"This reaffirms the faith in India's regulatory system and also reiterates the country's strength for the pharmaceutical sector. The effective regulatory oversight of vaccines is especially crucial for India which is a major vaccine producer and also supplier across the globe," health secretary Keshav Desiraju said.

India is a major vaccine producer with 12 major vaccine manufacturing facilities. These vaccines are used for the national and international market (150 countries), making India a major vaccine supplier across the globe.