The National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) is a recognised leading expertise centre in the fields of health, nutrition and environment and safety. RIVM promotes public health, nutrition, environment and safety. Safety of humans and ecosystems are central. The RIVM makes useful and independent knowledge available to the Dutch government to formulate policies and take necessary actions.
The RIVM is commissioned mainly by the Ministries of Health, Welfare and sport and Environment and Infrastructure.
RIVM does also collaborate with non-profit and international organizations like the European Union, WHO, United Nations.
From the 1st of January 2011 the public tasks of the Netherlands Vaccine Institute (NVI) have been transferred to the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu, RIVM). This concerns the following core tasks:
- Research and development of vaccines including Technology Transfer.
- Procurement, storage and distribution of vaccines for the National Immunisation Programme (Rijksvaccinatieprogramma, RVP), the National Influenza Prevention Programme (Nationaal Programma Grieppreventie, NPG) and the other national provisions such as pandemic preparedness, and the National Serum Depot (NSD).
Research and development of vaccines is being continued within the RIVM, in the new Vaccinology Unit. Further, the RIVM will continue to function as a training centre and a resource institute for WHO’s Global Learning Opportunities for Vaccine Quality program and for Developing Countries Vaccine Manufacturers (DCVM).