To support South Africa and the African continent increase vaccine manufacturing capacity and reducing reliance on imports, a consortium of nine development and finance institutions have today announced a partnership with Biovac in Cape Town, South Africa to support Biovac’s vaccine manufacturing expansion.
Biovac, a biopharmaceutical company and established vaccine manufacturer based in South Africa, is part of a consortium of organizations that have partnered with the World Health Organization (WHO) and its COVAX partners to establish the first COVID-19 mRNA vaccine technology transfer hub in South Africa. Biovac has also entered into an agreement with Pfizer in July 2021 with the goal to manufacture up to 100 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for use exclusively in Africa.
Biovac aims to expand its vaccine manufacturing capacity in Africa initially through its current activities related to the production of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine and subsequently for much-needed routine vaccines as well. This will bolster the global response to COVID-19 and advance long-term health security throughout the African continent. This expansion is aligned with the UN Sustainable Development (SDG) Goal 3 on Good Health and Well-being by improving access to safe, effective, quality, and affordable essential medicines and vaccines; and UN SDGs 8 and 9 on improving economic opportunities and upgrading technological capabilities of the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector in Africa. To realize the expansion and increased local vaccine manufacturing capacity on the African continent, Biovac will need to raise around $150 million (ZAR2.3 billion).
The consortium partners will aim to support Biovac in this future manufacturing plant capacity and vaccine pipeline expansion. The consortium partners include the African Development Bank (AfDB), CDC Group – UK’s development finance institution which is soon to be renamed British International Investment, the German development finance institution DEG, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Union Delegation to South Africa, International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa (IDC), and the French development finance institution Proparco.
“COVID-19 has proven that a more geographical spread of vaccine manufacturing is much needed globally, with the African continent having the least number of vaccine manufacturers. We are pleased that the consortium of funders is willing to work with Biovac to create sustainable African vaccine manufacturing, not only to respond to the current pandemic but also to much needed routine vaccines and future pandemic vaccines as well,” said Biovac CFO Craig Mitchell.
“France is strongly committed to increasing vaccine production and access in Africa, as illustrated by its support to the creation of the continent’s first mRNA vaccine technology transfer hub announced by President Emmanuel Macron in June last year. Through this partnership with Biovac and our DFI partners, Proparco will build on its experience working with local pharmaceutical companies and further contribute to scaling up vaccine manufacturing capacities in South Africa,” said Gregory Clemente, CEO of Proparco.
“We have developed a 2030 Pharmaceutical Action Plan/Continental Vision for Africa. We aim to increase the local production of pharmaceuticals to 70% by 2030, and of vaccines to 60% by 2040. Today’s announcement with Biovac is a strong testament to our pledge to make direct investments in manufacturers and provide leadership to support the development of the pharmaceutical industry on our continent. Africa must become self-sufficient. Health security is fundamental to economic security,” said African Development Bank Group President Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina, adding the COVID-19 pandemic was a wake-up call that Africa could not outsource the health of its people to other continents or rely on global supply chains.
“Accelerating vaccine delivery to countries that need them the most must become a global priority, and this requires collective effort. CDC is thrilled to be a part of this consortium that brings together DFI expertise and capital to support Biovac in contributing to scaling vaccine production across Africa, and bolster the continent’s response and self-reliance on this and other health crises,” said Tenbite Ermias, the CDC Group’s Managing Director for Africa.
“It is essential to join forces to address medical care in Africa. This is why we welcome Biovac’s initiative to expand its vaccine manufacturing capacity in Africa. Besides strengthening vaccine production on-site, it has a positive signaling effect for South Africa as a medical hub. We are happy to support the development of this project and look forward to strengthening the cooperation,” said Roland Siller, CEO of DEG.
