By Dr Morena Makhoana, CEO of Biovac 

As the United States scales back funding for South African health research and cuts its funding support for 15,000 local health workers, and for global vaccine purchaser Gavi, the case for self-reliance in health has never been more pressing. There’s an increased recognition that the country needs to prioritise domestic health spending, and self-sufficiency in medical treatment, and develop local pharmaceutical manufacturing. 

In fact, South Africa has well-established medical infrastructure and could become a biotech hub in Africa. The continent has a growing population and young demographics, which offers a guaranteed market and thus an investment case for local biotech firms. South Africa could produce vaccines and medication for the continent, providing both self-sufficiency and the development of medical skills and technology.  

Vaccine production

An example showcasing South Africa’s potential to become a biotech hub serving the continent is its self-sufficiency in some childhood vaccine production, a fact largely unknown to many. 

The country is home to Biovac, based in Cape Town. Biovac distributes vaccines annually for South Africa’s childhood vaccine programme, and manufactures its own vaccines including some of the most commonly used childhood vaccines. Three new vaccines against polio, cholera and meningococcal meningitis will be ready by 2028, to be sold by Biovac to countries across the continent. 

Biovac’s mission is to maintain scientific expertise and vaccine development within the country, ultimately serving the broader Southern African Development Community and the African market. Founded over two decades ago, Biovac’s evolution from only distributing imported vaccines to locally producing them, in partnership with multinational drug firms, is a testament to South Africa’s growing vaccine manufacturing capabilities and what can be achieved with public-private partnerships. 

One of Biovac’s flagship projects is the development of an oral cholera vaccine from scratch, which is expected to be ready for market by 2028. Biovac’s cholera vaccine efforts showcase its world-class research and development capabilities, but assist in plugging the gap globally where currently only one cholera vaccine manufacturer exists. 

National potential

Biovac is just one example that South Africa possesses potential as a biotech hub to produce vaccines and develop therapeutic medicines for Africa’s unique health challenges.  Other local vaccine manufacturers are at the forefront of mRNA vaccine research and are attracting global partnerships and collaborative research efforts.  

South Africa’s universities, with their significant research capabilities based on studies of vaccine development for HIV, TB, and other diseases, provide a strong foundation for creating a biotech hub to address continental diseases. 

The recent €4.7 billion pledge from the European Union to support South Africa in developing clean energy, greener mining projects, and specifically local vaccine production underscores the global recognition of South Africa’s strategic position in the biopharma landscape. There is both funding and expertise available; what is needed is the political will to retain vaccine manufacturing expertise within the country. 

Policital will

The investment case for creating policies that enable South Africa to become a biotech hub is clear.

Africa has the ability to sustain local production of medicines and vaccines. For one it can invest in and commit to local procurement of vaccines across the continent, providing a sustainable market for vaccine producers. 

Gavi, the global vaccine alliance that has traditionally bulk-purchased vaccines for lower-income countries, is facing funding cuts as the U.S. withdraws support. Yet Africa is increasingly in a position to create its own pooled procurement system, allowing countries to buy vaccines in bulk from pharmaceutical companies. This would secure a guaranteed market for local pharmaceutical and biotech companies and with the benefit of scale being able to reduce costs for large-scale purchases. 

Additionally, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), has just set up an African Epidemic Fund, an instrument that provides flexible funding to support countries in responding quickly to outbreaks. Such financial innovations also provide the investment case that the continent can buy products locally and timeously in the case of emergency outbreaks of disease.  

The African Union has already set an ambitious target to procure 60% of its vaccines locally by 2040, up from a mere 1% today. This means the market for vaccine manufacturers is growing rapidly, and what’s needed now is the political will across the continent to support local production. Biovac’s own projections show that by 2028 vaccine sales to the continent will become an increasingly strategic market for South African manufacturers, underscoring the sustainability of local vaccine manufacturing.

Ultimately, South Africa’s potential as a biotech hub is not just a matter of national interest, but of regional significance. This is epitomised by the establishment of the mRNA Hub in South Africa by the World Health Organisation. The continent’s future health and economic stability could very well depend on its ability to manufacture and distribute vaccines locally. 

Africa no longer has to rely on external support for its health needs — it has the infrastructure, the talent, and the capacity to lead its own medical revolution. The question is: will the political will match this potential? 

_________________________________________________________________________________

Biovac is a bio-pharmaceutical company based in Cape Town that is the result of a partnership formed with the South African government in 2003 to establish local vaccine manufacturing capability for the provision of vaccines for national health management and security.

The views and opinions expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author, who is not employed by Health-e News. Health-e News is committed to presenting diverse perspectives to enrich public discourse on health-related issues.