Pharma industry pushes for Africa to get licence to make generic HIV injection
Only four African firms are among the dozens of drugs manufacturers that have been awarded sub-licences flowing from the deals signed by the MPP
An industry association representing SA pharmaceutical manufacturers has criticised the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) for failing to grant African generic drug makers licences to make cheap copies of ViiV Healthcare's long-acting cabotegravir injection, which prevents HIV.
Africa bears a disproportionate share of the world’s HIV/Aids burden, and the AU is pushing hard the continent's pharmaceutical manufacturers to play a bigger role in making products for combating HIV. Its drive to improve Africa’s security of supply gained fresh momentum during the coronavirus pandemic, as countries with domestic Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing capacity prioritised their own citizens when shots were in short supply, leaving African nations at the back of the queue...
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