Codix Bio Ltd, a Nigerian manufacturer, says it plans to produce millions of HIV and malaria test kits at its new plant for local and regional markets.
According to a Reuters report on Thursday, the move will address gaps caused by funding cutbacks at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), a US donor agency.
US President Donald Trump had ordered a funding pause for HIV treatment in developing countries as part of an executive order on foreign aid.
The executive orders had also affected the operations of USAID and other foreign interventions of the US government.
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Speaking to Reuters, Olanrewaju Balaja, general manager of Codix Bio, said the company will begin rolling out kits later this month from its plant, located in Ogun state.
He said the production of kits will be in partnership with SD Biosensor, a South Korean pharmaceutical producer, with support from the World Health Organization (WHO).
He said the plant has an initial production capacity of 147 million kits annually, with the potential to expand to over 160 million.
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“From the statistics of what is supplied (by USAID and PEPFAR) for a specific programme year, and looking at what we have currently in capacity for Nigeria, we have enough capacity to meet the demand,” Balaja said.
He said the company could expand operations to serve “West and Sub-Saharan Africa, including other African countries”.
“The focus was for us to be able to play in the field of supply of rapid diagnostic test kits for donor agencies, which particularly USAID was at the forefront,” Balaja added.
The general manager said the Nigerian government and donor agencies like Global Fund are expected to purchase test kits from Codix Bio.
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