TheCable

The Institut Pasteur de Dakar (IPD) and the Mastercard Foundation have announced a $45 million partnership aimed at expanding vaccine manufacturing in Africa.

IPD is a Senegalese not-for-profit foundation and a biomedical research centre advancing equitable access to health in Africa while the Mastercard Foundation is a Canadian organisation focusing on education and financial inclusion.

The organisations announced the partnership dubbed MADIBA (Manufacturing in Africa for disease immunization and building autonomy) in a statement on Thursday.

According to the statement, the multi-year project would also establish a centre of excellence to equip talented young people, particularly women, with specialised skills in vaccine research, manufacturing, production, and distribution.

Based in Senegal, MADIBA aims to manufacture half of the country’s pharmaceutical products by 2035 as well as the African Union’s target to fulfil 60 percent of the continent’s vaccine needs by 2040, the statement added.

The statement noted that the project would be a blueprint for future vaccine manufacturing facilities and marks a crucial first step towards vaccine self-sufficiency in Africa.

Amadou Sall, the CEO of IPD, said partnerships with African universities aimed at promoting science education would be part of the project.

Sall added that the project would enhance human capital development for biomanufacturing in Africa and described MADIBA as a “crucial pillar for vaccine equity and autonomy and a significant driver for high-skilled job creation among young and female Africans”.

“We aim to train a workforce for MADIBA and other African vaccine manufacturers, develop partnerships with African universities and promote science education among young students. We extend our gratitude to the Mastercard Foundation for investing in our mission to accelerate equitable and sustainable access to health in Africa along with other financial and technical partners of the MADIBA project,’’ the IPD CEO said.

Reeta Roy, president and CEO of the Mastercard Foundation, said the partnership was triggered by the need to safeguard Africa’s health security, adding that the project would improve the economic outlook for youths on the continent.

“This partnership builds on the game-changing intent of the saving lives and livelihoods initiative. That is, to keep everyone safe by rolling out COVID-19 vaccinations while ensuring Africa’s long-term health security by building vaccine manufacturing expertise and workforce on the continent,” Roy said.

“In the process, our collaboration will also benefit the livelihoods of young people in Africa.”