Moderna plans to build mRNA vaccine manufacturing plant in Africa

Biotechnology company Moderna says it plans to build a messenger RNA therapeutics and vaccine manufacturing facility “in Africa” — but has yet to decide on a country. The plant is expected to produce up to 500 million vaccine doses annually, including for COVID-19 and other conditions.

This is the first announcement by a COVID-19 vaccine producer to fully manufacture mRNA vaccine substance in Africa, marking a victory for those pushing to increase local manufacturing of both COVID-19 vaccines and mRNA technologies more broadly on the continent. Only about 4% of Africa’s population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19 — a shortcoming that has largely been blamed on nations’ reliance on doses from overseas.

In July, Pfizer and BioNTech signed the first deal for the production of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines on the continent, with a South African company to handle manufacturing. But that deal was only for the “fill and finish” process, which involves putting the vaccine substance — received from facilities elsewhere — into vials and shipping the doses. According to Médecins Sans Frontières, this arrangement does little to help Africa “achieve vaccine independence.”

In a press release Thursday, Moderna said its new manufacturing plant would produce the vaccine substance itself. The company said it plans to invest $500 million in the facility.

“On behalf of our growing team, partners and shareholders, we are determined to extend Moderna’s societal impact through the investment in a state-of-the-art mRNA manufacturing facility in Africa. While we are still working to increase capacity in our current network to deliver vaccines for the ongoing pandemic in 2022, we believe it is important to invest in the future,” said Stéphane Bancel, chief executive officer at Moderna.

The company did not specify a date for when the facility might be operational, nor did it indicate how many of the 500 million doses would be COVID-19 vaccines. The press release said Moderna will “soon” start searching for a country and site to host the facility.

Moderna’s is one of just two mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, with the other developed by Pfizer and BioNTech. Vaccines employing mRNA technology have the advantage of being easier to make and potentially more effective than other types.

Thursday’s announcement comes amid growing calls for pharmaceutical companies to share the technical know-how for producing COVID-19 vaccines to help increase supplies for low- and middle-income countries — as well as pressure for more nations to support an intellectual property waiver for COVID-19 vaccines, treatments, tests, and other health tools. The Moderna announcement does not involve a technology transfer to an existing manufacturer on the continent.

​​“Vaccine manufacturing is very, very much welcome news. It is news or efforts that will address our medium term to long term needs. It doesn’t necessarily solve our problem today,”  said Dr. John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, during a press briefing on Thursday. “The problems we have to solve today is access  — quick access to vaccines.”

Critics have also charged that high-income countries’ donations of doses — including Moderna vaccines — have trickled into low- and middle-income countries too slowly, with meager supplies making national vaccine rollouts challenging.

In June, the World Health Organization announced the first “technology transfer hub” for mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in South Africa, with plans to teach African manufacturers how to make vaccines. While producing mRNA vaccines is faster, it involves a “far more complex process” compared with other types of vaccines, such as those for yellow fever, according to WHO.

In September, Reuters reported that the hub had not reached a deal with Moderna and was planning to move forward with replicating the company’s vaccine on its own. Meanwhile, BioNTech has suggested it may broaden its mRNA manufacturing base to include Rwanda and Senegal.

Update, Oct. 7, 2021: This article was updated with comments from Dr. John Nkengasong and to clarify that the Moderna announcement means this is the first time for a COVID-19 vaccine producer to fully manufacture mRNA vaccine substance in Africa, and does not involve a technology transfer to an existing manufacturer on the continent.