BRUSSELS – Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus lauded on Friday the Egyptian government’s efforts to manufacture COVID-19 vaccines.
Speaking at the second day activities of the Sixth European Union (EU) – African Union (AU) Summit in Brussels on Friday, with President Abdel Fattah El Sisi participating, the WHO chief expressed expressed his great happiness at the announcement by the governments of Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia to start producing coronavirus vaccines.
He added “Depending on the infrastructure, workforce and clinical research and regulatory capacity in place, WHO and partners will work with the beneficiary countries to develop a roadmap and put in place the necessary training and support so that they can start producing vaccines as soon as possible.”
He further noted: “No other event like the COVID-19 pandemic has shown that reliance on a few companies to supply global public goods is limiting, and dangerous. In the mid- to long-term, the best way to address health emergencies and reach universal health coverage is to significantly increase the capacity of all regions to manufacture the health products they need, with equitable access as their primary endpoint.”
He also announced the first six countries that will receive the technology needed to produce mRNA vaccines on the African continent. Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia all applied and have been selected as recipients.
The announcement was made at a ceremony hosted by the European Council, France, South Africa and WHO in the presence of President Macron, President Ramaphosa, the President of the European Council, Charles Michel and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
The global mRNA technology transfer hub was established in 2021 to support manufacturers in low- and middle-income countries to produce their own vaccines, ensuring that they have all the necessary operating procedures and know-how to manufacture mRNA vaccines at scale and according to international standards.
Primarily set up to address the COVID-19 emergency, the hub has the potential to expand manufacturing capacity for other products as well, putting countries in the driver’s seat when it comes to the kinds of vaccines and other products they need to address their health priorities.
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