The Gates Foundation is to invest $40 million in African manufacturers to provide access to mRNA vaccines.
“Putting innovative mRNA technology in the hands of researchers and manufacturers in Africa and around the world will help ensure more people benefit from next-generation vaccines,” Nigeria’s coordinating minister of health and social welfare and a global expert on vaccines, Dr. Muhammad Ali Pate, said in a press release.
“This collaboration is an encouraging step that will increase access to critical health technologies and help African countries develop vaccines that meet the needs of their people.”
Quantoom Biosciences will receive $20 million from the Gates Foundation, “ensuring [low- and middle-income countries] can benefit from the next-generation mRNA health tools.
The Institute Pasteur de Dakar (IPD) and Biovac, African-based vaccine manufacturers, will both receive $5 million.
Another $10 million will be given to other manufacturing companies.
The Gates Foundation previously invested $55 million in mRNA manufacturing.
Reporting from The Hill:
In a release, the foundation said the initiative will build on lessons learned from 20 years of working with vaccine manufacturers to “leverage recent scientific advances to develop low-cost, high-quality health tools that reach more people around the world.” The $40 million investment will advance a research platform from Quantoom Biosciences that was developed with an early-research Grand Challenges grant made to its parent company, Univercells.
