South Africa’s lax patent laws could block its future access to messenger RNA vaccines and treatments. They could also lock the World Health Organization’s mRNA hub — located in Cape Town — out of sub-Saharan Africa’s biggest pharmaceutical market right on its doorstep.
In June 2021, WHO announced the creation of its first mRNA hub at pharmaceutical company Afrigen Biologics and Vaccines’ Cape Town laboratories. The hub is a response to the vaccine inequity that marked the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic.
If WHO could support South African scientists to develop a home-grown mRNA vaccine, they could teach the technology to a network of other emerging producers — known as “spokes.” The end result? A new class of emerging vaccine manufacturers in low- and middle-income countries. Together, this new cadre would not only increase the availability of affordable COVID-19 vaccines but also of future immunizations, finally breaking a cycle of vaccine hoarding during pandemics.
About the author
Laura López González@LLopezGonzalez
Laura López González is a freelance health journalist and editor with 15 years of experience covering health in the global south from Johannesburg, South Africa. Her work has appeared in outlets such as Al Jazeera, the Guardian, and El Pais.
