BEIJING -- As part of China's emergency response to the H7N9 bird flu on technological front, China formally launched a research project on Wednesday for developing a vaccine for H7N9.

Jointly launched by the Ministry of Science and Technology and the National Health and Family Planning Commission here, the move is expected to make a vaccine ready within seven months, an official statement said.

China officially confirmed the occurrence of human infection with the H7N9 virus late last month.

So far, the country has reported a total of 33 H7N9 cases, including nine which ended in fatalities.