• Funding supports end-to-end vaccine manufacturing capacity in Africa

• Plant aims to cover 40% of global cholera vaccine shortfall

• Project aligns with African Union target to boost local production

South African biopharmaceutical company Biovac has secured €95 million (about $112.4 million) from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the European Investment Bank (EIB) to build Africa’s first end-to-end vaccine manufacturing facility.

The financing package was arranged by the IFC, the World Bank’s private sector arm, which provided a €20 million senior loan. The EIB contributed €75 million in quasi-equity financing, according to a joint statement released on April 16. Additional funding is still being mobilized.

The EIB’s quasi-equity investment, delivered under the European Commission-backed Human Development Accelerator (HDX) program in partnership with the Gates Foundation, is designed to provide long-term, flexible capital while sharing project risks.

The plant, expected to be completed in 2028, is intended to strengthen vaccine production capacity on the continent, improve access to essential immunization, and enhance preparedness for future pandemics. Initial production will focus on oral cholera vaccines, with plans to expand to polio, pneumonia, and meningitis vaccines.

Once operational, the facility is expected to produce between 30 million and 40 million doses annually, addressing around 40% of the global cholera vaccine supply gap and supplying regional markets through channels such as UNICEF and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

A strategic push for local production

The project is expected to create more than 340 skilled jobs and about 7,000 indirect jobs, while supporting technology transfer and innovation across the vaccine value chain.

It also aligns with the African Union’s goal of increasing locally produced vaccines from about 1% today to 60% by 2040. Achieving this target will require coordinated efforts from governments, donors, multilateral institutions, and private sector initiatives such as Biovac’s.

Biovac, which is 47.5% owned by two South African public agencies, currently supplies vaccines for the country’s national immunization program. Initially focused on distributing imported vaccines, the company has progressively expanded into “fill and finish” operations—the final stage of vaccine production.

The company produces vaccines targeting diseases such as tuberculosis, tetanus, diphtheria, polio, Haemophilus influenzae, and hepatitis B. During the Covid-19 pandemic, it partnered with Pfizer and BioNTech to produce vaccines for the African Union.

Walid Kéfi