Egypt, Tunisia among African recipients of mRNA technology to produce COVID-19 vaccine

CAIRO - 18 February 2022: World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced on Friday that six African countries including Egyptian Tunisia would receive “mRNA” technology to produce vaccines against the Coronavirus locally

 

At the European Union - African Union summit in Brussels, Tedros Adhanom announced the first African six countries that would receive this technology. The countries are Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia.

 

“The global mRNA technology transfer hub was established in 2021 to support manufacturers in low- and middle-income countries to produce their own vaccines, ensuring that they have all the necessary operating procedures and know-how to manufacture mRNA vaccines at scale and according to international standards,” WHO announced in a statement on Friday.

 

“No other event like the COVID-19 pandemic has shown that reliance on a few companies to supply global public goods is limiting, and dangerous. In the mid-to-long-term, the best way to address health emergencies and reach universal health coverage is to significantly increase the capacity of all regions to manufacture the health products they need, with equitable access as their primary endpoint,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

 

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi expressed his appreciation for Egypt being selected to be among the countries of the African continent that will receive the support to obtain the mRNA technology used in the manufacturing of vaccines and other important medical drugs to confront many incurable diseases.

 

President Sisi’s appreciation was voiced in his speech at the WHO Session on Vaccine Technology and Health Systems, on the sidelines of the EU-AU summit in Brussels on Friday.