The Russian ambassador to the Philippines said the planned cooperation for the potential establishment of a vaccine manufacturing project in the country should proceed as envisioned despite its being preoccupied with the war in Ukraine.
In an interview at the Kamuning Pandesal Forum, Ambassador Marat Ignatyevich Pavlov said the cooperation still stands with the Russian side just waiting for the right technical partner for the project. This is despite the fact that Russia is currently preoccupied with its invasion in Ukraine.
The ambassador said they are ready once a reliable technical partner is available citing the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) could be tapped for the planned COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing in the Philippines. The Russian Ambassador also noted that during the pandemic they provided 10 million doses of the Sputnik Covid-19 vaccines, benefitting 5 million Filipinos.
In October 2020, the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Department of Trade and Industry said that Philippines and Russia are discussing potential manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V by Gamaleya Institute in the country.
Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez discussed with then Russian Ambassador to the Philippines H.E. Igor Khovaev the possibility of manufacturing and distributing Russia’s COVID-19 vaccine in the Philippines during the Ambassador’s farewell courtesy call on October 6, 2020.
At that time, DTI Undersecretary Ceferino S. Rodolfo, who is also Board of Investment managing head, said that Philippines and Russia also agreed the need to strengthen the ongoing Joint Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation (JCTEC), which covers the areas of trade, investment, and other economic cooperation projects between the two nations.
Rodolfo said the JCTEC is slated to meet in November this year wherein “the important part of the JTEC meeting agenda is the collaboration on vaccines.”
While Rodolfo said that the discussion was still preliminary, the discussions appeared to be already gaining ground with Russia having discussed the plan through their Manila embassy with the Department of Health and the Department of Science and Technology.
The DOST through Assistant Leah Buendia has already engaged with Russia’s Gamaleya Institute and RDIF. Alexander Zhuravlev, senior vice-president of the investment department of RDIF has presented Gamaleya’s Sputnik V vaccine on September 18, 2020. The Russian Sputnik V is touted as the world’s first Human Adenovirus Vector-based COVID-19 vaccine.
“The offer of Russia is not only to supply vaccines, but also to collaborate for the manufacturing of the vaccine in the Philippines. Ambassador Igor emphasized that Russia is the only country who also offers in-country manufacturing of the vaccine,” said Rodolfo.
Also, DTI Assistant Secretary Allan Gepty said that Russia was willing to venture into manufacturing provided there is a pharma company that can handle full scale production of vaccines. “I think this is something that the Philippines will have to prepare or build capacity,” he said.
Gepty explained that the roadmap of the vaccine development in the Philippines is in the medium term to have a local pharma company to establish a fill and finish for the vaccine. In the long term, a virology science and technology institute has been requested to be established (currently a bill is filed in Congress) to build the capability initially for R and D and eventually to have our own full-scale vaccine manufacturing.