Vacsera in Negotiation with SinoVac to Expand Vaccine Factory in Egypt

On 4 January 2023, Vacsera is negotiating with SinoVac to expand its manufacturing facility for the production of vaccines. According to the Annual Report, Vacsera produced 50 million doses of Vacsera-SinoVac shots in 2022.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, several African countries have strived to localize the production of vaccines in a bid to achieve #HealthSecurity. A first agreement was signed back in April 2021 between Egyptian state-owned vaccine production company Vacsera and China biopharma firm SinoVac.

Following a site survey, the Vacsera facotry in Agouza was selected to produce the COVID vaccine since it could be readily adapted for the new product. The estimated capacity for production is about 200 million doses per year. It is worth noting that the #WHO previously inspected the factory and gave it the thumps up.

The factory occupies an area of 60,000 square meters, with 6,000 square meters being rejigged for COVID vacine production. The facility also comprises 8 biotech labs and a state-of-the-art warehouse. The complex is protected from power cuts by a UPS as well as by a generator.

Egypt was selected by China due to its comprehensive capabilities in the scientific, technological and industrial domains. “The Chinese government strongly supports the manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines in Egypt,” underlined Egyptian Deputy Minister of Health, Mohamed Hassani.

Egypt ambitions to export surplus to the region once the production plant reaches a certain capacity. Its location near the Suez Canal linking Africa, Middle-East and Europe was also a factor in the decision.