Pfizer and BioNTech on Wednesday announced they have collaborated with South African company Biovac for the production of COVID-19 vaccines for the African Union (AU), reported Africa News.
In a joint statement published on Wednesday, the two companies said Biovac will complete the last step in the production process, known as “fill and finish”, of the BioNTec and Pfizer vaccine.
The trio aims to supply about 100 million vaccine doses a year to the 55 member countries of the African Union. The move is aimed at fulfilling the African continent’s desperate need for more vaccine doses amid a recent surge of cases.
The statement added that the ingredients to produce the BioNtec and Pfizer vaccine will arrive from Europe-based plants, while the bottling phase will be carried out in Cape Town. The transfer of technologies and the installation of the machines required in the manufacturing of the vaccines will start immediately. The production will begin in 2022.
John Nkengasong, director of the African Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), said it was indeed great and good news. He added that every action counts in the fight against the pandemic.
Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose Janssen coronavirus vaccine is already being bottled at a plant in South Africa.
The vaccination levels are very low across Africa as the continent is 99% dependent on imports for its vaccines. Less than 2% of the continent’s population of 1.3 billion has received at least one dose, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). Many African countries depending on vaccines from the World Health Organization (WHO)-backed COVAX facility have been left waiting for months.
Last month, the WHO announced it was setting up a hub, or training facility, in South Africa to provide know-how and licenses to produce COVID-19 vaccines to the companies there.
