The ACTION Global Health Advocacy Partnership releases a discussion paper on advancing African regional manufacturing of vaccines and other medical countermeasures, to which Global Health Advocates contributed to as a member of the network.
The demand for greater capacity to manufacture vaccines, diagnostics, therapeutics, and other medical countermeasures (MCMs) locally on the African continent is not new. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, Africa, which comprises 17% of the entire global population, was importing 99% of its necessary vaccines and between 70% and 90% of its other pharmaceutical and medical consumables. Furthermore, many African countries are reliant on donor grants or allocation cycles that are often time limited, disease-specific (often prioritizing diseases that are trending in global health discourses), or commonly vertical or siloed in application.
ACTION conducted a desk review of resources and interviews with key informants deeply involved in efforts supporting or advancing Africa’s regional capacity for medical countermeasure manufacturing.