Biovac launches ‘state-of-the-art’ Cape Town lab to manufacture end-to-end vaccines

The South African biopharmaceutical company Biovac, on Thursday, 6 November, officially opened a “state-of-the-art” product development laboratory at its Cape Town facility, expanding the company’s ability to develop vaccines and other therapeutics.

The new laboratory will enable Biovac to produce vaccines from the early stages of product development, to drug substance and product manufacturing, to the end product, according to the company.

Biovac’s CEO, Dr Morena Makhoana, said the establishment of the laboratory was a “major milestone” for the company and vaccine innovation in Africa.

“There’s a lot happening globally. There’s a lot happening in vaccines. Our hope today is a demonstration, with this new product development opportunity that we’re opening, of … real physical action and execution,” he said at the opening of the laboratory.

Biovac initially focused on distributing imported childhood vaccines in partnership with the National Department of Health, before progressing to collaborating with multinational companies to fill and finish vaccines.

“[Biovac] is now further advancing their vaccine development capability across more technology platforms, including mRNA, cell culture and the already well-established bacterial technology platforms,” said the company.

Triumph of partnership 

The new laboratory was established with the support of the Gates Foundation, a US-based nonprofit organisation. It will allow Biovac to:

• Develop its own vaccines across multiple platforms, with an improved ability to respond to future pandemics or outbreaks;
• Develop multiple vaccines simultaneously while fostering innovation and intellectual property creation for products targeting prevalent diseases in Africa; and
• Access infrastructure for mRNA drug substance development, screening, evaluation and manufacturing.

The Gates Foundation has provided about $15-million to Biovac through various grants, according to Vijay Yabannavar, a senior programme officer focused on vaccine development in low- and middle-income countries at the foundation.

This included $7-million to enable Biovac to develop and manufacture an oral cholera vaccine, covering a technology transfer from the International Vaccine Institute in South Korea and a clinical materials scale-up; and $7-million for technology transfer and preparation related to mRNA vaccine development.

 “When it comes to African investments, one of the things that we’re trying to do is to go to the areas where there’s good regional leadership, as well as scientific talent — obviously, South Africa being one, and the Biovac institute was very prominent,” said Yabannavar.

“In general, what we want to do is support, but really we want the leadership to come from the local organisations.”

In 2022, the African Union Commission and Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention committed to ensuring that 60% of vaccines used on the continent were manufactured in Africa by 2040, according to Biovac. Only about 1% are produced in Africa at this stage.

Yabannavar noted that this was an “optimistic objective”, but added that the Gates Foundation was focusing on “catalytic funding” that could be taken forward by other partners in the private sector, governments and the international funding space. The foundation seeks to “de-risk” programmes to attract more investment.

Reflecting on whether there would be a market for African-made vaccines, Yabannavar said: “We are trying to get [developing country vaccine manufacturing] ... well set up to produce vaccines at a low cost, [with] that same intent for Biovac as well. If you can make the vaccines cheap enough, then there is a demand across the whole network. Not only regionally, but also globally.”

Building health resilience 

Dr Nomalungelo Gina, the deputy minister of science, technology and innovation, said the new laboratory was a “glorious achievement” for South Africa.

“This investment also embodies the catalytic nature of facilities that have initiated a … cycle where their existence attracts more projects, partnerships and investments. [It] goes beyond vaccine manufacturing. It also talks to our ambition of building a capable state [and] improving livelihoods,” she said.

Gina spoke of the “enduring pain” rooted in South Africa’s experiences during the Covid-19 pandemic, when shortages of diagnostic kits and “vaccine bullying” affected the country’s response to the health threat.

“The issue of vaccine capabilities and our own sovereignty is very close to us as the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation, and government as a whole,” she said.

“A country like South Africa must build health resilience and mitigate against continued [reliance] on imported vaccines that come at a huge cost to our communities... We believe that with such innovations … we are going to make our vaccines more affordable [for our people].” DM