The African Development Bank and South African vaccine manufacturer Biovac have finalised a loan of up to $15 million to support the expansion of a multi-vaccine manufacturing facility in Cape Town.
The financing forms part of a wider investment package for the facility, which is expected to increase Biovac’s annual production capacity to as many as 500 million doses. The project is being financed by a syndicate led by the International Finance Corporation, with participation from other development institutions and health-sector partners.
Building end-to-end production capacity
According to the AfDB, the expanded facility is expected to become Africa’s first end-to-end producer of oral cholera vaccines and South Africa’s first producer of locally manufactured inactivated polio vaccines. Completion is planned for 2028.
End-to-end production would cover a broader part of the manufacturing process rather than limiting local activity to packaging or final-stage operations. That capability is important to Africa’s effort to reduce dependence on imported vaccines and strengthen preparedness for outbreaks and supply disruptions.
Jobs, skills and health security
The AfDB expects the project to support 340 full-time jobs, with women projected to account for 43 per cent of the workforce and young people 30 per cent. Its wider value will also depend on specialised technical training, regulatory capacity, procurement commitments and sustained demand for vaccines produced on the continent.
The investment supports the African Union’s ambition to expand local production of vaccines and other health products. However, the stated production capacity and manufacturing milestones remain planned outcomes until the facility is completed, validated and operating at scale.
Sources and references
- African Development Bank: AfDB and Biovac sign $15 million vaccine-production agreement, 24 July 2026
- Africa CDC: Presidential Declaration on advancing local manufacturing of health products in Africa
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