As the government weighs up where the country needs to go from here in terms of Covid-19 settings, the search for a specific Omicron vaccine goes on.
Spearheading the local work on this front is the Malaghan Institute of Medical Research, which brings together the relevant academic institutions as well as the private sector.
Malaghan currently has two lead candidates - a spike protein booster vaccine developed locally and a pan COVID-19 vaccine as part of a Trans-Tasman collaboration.
The institute's director of strategic partnerships Kjesten Wiig spoke to Māni Dunlop.