The Korean branch of Sanofi Pasteur, a French vaccine manufacturer, said Wednesday it would provide free flu vaccines to 7,000 homeless people this year.

The drug maker has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Korea Association of Welfare Institute for the Homeless, a nonprofit organization, to deliver the vaccines to neglected people in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province.

The plan would provide protection to more than 80 percent of the homeless people registered at support centers and shelters across the country.

“This agreement is significant in that we will be able to benefit over 80 percent of the homeless residing in homeless facilities across the nation, expanding the coverage of our vaccination service performed over the past two years in Seoul to homeless shelters in the Gyeonggi and Incheon regions,” the company’s general manager Ranga Welarantne said.

“Sanofi Pasteur will continue to pursue leadership roles in helping the neglected through a continuous and systemic vaccination service, as well as employee volunteer programs,” he added.

As part of its Helping Hand Campaign, Sanofi Pasteur Korea has been providing the homeless with flu and pneumonia vaccines since 2011. For the last two years, the vaccine manufacturer offered free vaccines for infectious diseases to a total of 7,500 homeless in Seoul.

In 2011 alone, Sanofi Pasteur donated about 150 million won worth of flu and pneumonia vaccines and offered free injections to 2,500 underprivileged people in collaboration with Seoul Medical Center. The company expanded its social contribution last year by signing a partnership with the Seoul city government, charity organizations and hospitals. It provided free vaccinations for 5,000 homeless that year, the company said.

Sanofi Pasteur is the vaccines division of Sanofi-Aventis Group, a multinational pharmaceutical company. Sanofi Pasteur is the largest company in the world for human vaccines, according to the company.

By Cho Chung-un (christory@heraldcorp.com)