Two more local firms added to the country’s list of potential local vaccine manufacturers, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has disclosed.
DOST Undersecretary for Research and Development Rowena Cristina L. Guevara, who leads the Task Group on Vaccine Evaluation and Selection (TG-VES), said the number of potential vaccine manufacturers in the country is now eight after two local firms expressed interest to go into manufacturing of vaccines in the country.
“Yes, two more,” she told the Manila Bulletin when asked to confirm if the number of potential local vaccine manufacturers has increased.
In an online media forum on April 15, Guevara announced that at least two local pharmaceutical companies could possibly produce their own COVID-19 vaccines by “end of 2022” under a fill-and-finish vaccine manufacturing arrangements.
She said out of the six companies that expressed their interest to go into manufacturing of vaccines in the country, two were aggressively pushing their plan to produce coronavirus vaccines.
The DOST started talks with the private sector as early as 2020.
Guevara had disclosed the profile of the six local firms that were planning to venture into local vaccine manufacturing.
She said one of the firms is “a long-term partner of a Chinese vaccine developer”, while one company “has connection with a vaccine developer in Germany.”
The DOST official said the other firm has extensive facilities in Asia. “All the vaccines that we need are being manufactured by their prospect foreign partner, these are: rubella, polio, HIV, TB, COVID and other non-COVID-19 vaccines.”
In late March, Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez identified the 6 firms. These were Greentech, Glovax Biotech, IG Biotech, New Marketlink, Lloyds Laboratories, and Unilab.
https://mb.com.ph/2021/03/26/6-local-firms-plan-to-manufacture-vaccines/