Sanofi and Biovac pioneers in the production of polio vaccines in Africa
Paris, June 20, 2024. Sanofi and South African biopharmaceutical company Biovac, based in Cape Town, today announced the conclusion of a partnership for the local production of inactivated polio vaccines (or inactivated polio vaccine, IPV) in Africa. This agreement aims to enable the regional manufacturing of IPV to meet the potential needs of more than 40 African countries. This partnership with Sanofi makes Biovac the leading African producer of IPV, on African soil and serving the African continent, and supports the ambition of the African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to have 60% of administered vaccines locally produced in Africa by 2040.
Thomas Triomphe
Executive Vice President, Vaccines, Sanofi
“Sanofi has been supplying billions of doses of polio vaccines around the world for 40 years, contributing to efforts to achieve the global eradication of this disease. Unfortunately, since the COVID-19 pandemic, many routine childhood immunization programs have been interrupted or disrupted. Closing the vaccination backlog will be essential to prevent a surge in cases in many countries and the partnership between Sanofi and Biovac is a decisive step in this direction. Establishing this partnership now is essential to enable Biovac’s production facilities to prepare for upcoming international calls for tender. »
Dr King Makhoana
Managing Director, Biovac
“We are very proud of this partnership with Sanofi which will give Biovac the means to become a champion of the eradication of polio on the African continent and to produce doses of IPV locally to meet the needs of the African population as closely as possible. . »
A major partner of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative since 1988, Sanofi has provided the world and UNICEF with more than 1.5 billion doses of IPV, through GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance , whose objective is to vaccinate the population of more than 70 of the poorest countries on the planet with the aim of eradicating polio.
Sanofi will continue to produce IPV in bulk form and Biovac, which will hold the marketing authorization, will be responsible for the final stages of its formulation and the filling, packaging and distribution operations at UNICEF, for African countries members of the GAVI alliance.
Biovac is a leading biotechnology company and center of excellence, anchored in Africa, specializing in the development and production of vaccines and other biological products for Africa and beyond. Biovac was established in 2003, with the collaboration of the South African government, to revive the local production of vaccines for human use in southern Africa.
Polio is a highly contagious disease that primarily affects children under the age of five and puts them at particularly high risk of temporary or permanent paralysis and death. There is no cure for poliomyelitis and only prevention through vaccination can prevent it. Infected people excrete the virus for several weeks, through feces or pharyngeal secretions, when coughing or sneezing. Nearly 90% of infected people are asymptomatic or have very mild symptoms, which often go unnoticed. In other people the first symptoms appear as fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, aches, stiff neck and pain in the limbs. One in 200 infections results in irreversible paralysis.
Over the past 30 years, under the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, 2.5 billion children have been vaccinated against polio, resulting in a 99% reduction in cases in the world. By the end of 2023, only two endemic countries remained (Afghanistan and Pakistan). Thanks to global efforts to eradicate the disease, nearly 20 million people have escaped paralysis.
About Sanofi
We are an innovative, global health company driven by a purpose: pursuing the miracles of science to improve people’s lives. Across the world, our teams are working to transform the practice of medicine to make the impossible possible. We provide therapeutic solutions that can change the lives of patients and vaccines that protect millions of people around the world, guided by the ambition of sustainable development and our social responsibility.
Sanofi is listed on EURONEXT: SAN and NASDAQ: SNY.
Media Relations
Sandrine Guendoul | + 33 6 25 09 14 25 | [email protected]
Evan Berland | +1 215 432 0234 | [email protected]
Nicolas Obrist | + 33 6 77 21 27 55 | [email protected]
Victor Rouault | + 33 6 70 93 71 40 | [email protected]
Timothy Gilbert | + 1 516 521 2929 | [email protected]
Investor relations
Thomas Kudsk Larsen |+ 44 7545 513 693 | [email protected]
Alizé Kaisserian | + 33 6 47 04 12 11 | [email protected]
Arnaud Delépine | + 33 6 73 69 36 93 | [email protected]
Felix Lauscher | + 1 908 612 7239 | [email protected]
Keita Browne | + 1 781 249 1766 | [email protected]
Nathalie Pham | + 33 7 85 93 30 17 | [email protected]
Tarik Elgoutni | + 1 617 710 3587 | [email protected]
Thibaud Châtelet | + 33 6 80 80 89 90 | [email protected]
Forward-looking statements
This release contains forward-looking statements. These statements do not constitute historical facts. These statements include projections and estimates and the assumptions on which they are based, statements regarding plans, objectives, intentions and expectations regarding financial results, events, operations, future services, product development and their potential or future performance. These forward-looking statements can often be identified by the words “expect”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “intend”, “estimate” or “plan” and other similar terms. Although Sanofi’s management believes that these forward-looking statements are reasonable, investors are cautioned that these forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, which are difficult to predict and generally beyond the control of Sanofi, which may imply that the actual results and events realized differ materially from those expressed, implied or anticipated in the forward-looking information and statements. These risks and uncertainties include in particular the uncertainties inherent in research and development, future clinical data and analyses, including post-marketing, decisions by regulatory authorities, such as the FDA or the EMA, to approve whether or not, and on what date, a drug, process or biological product filing application for one of these product candidates, as well as their labeling and other decisions factors that may affect the availability or commercial potential of these product candidates, the fact that the product candidates if approved may not achieve commercial success, the future approval and commercial success of therapeutic alternatives, the ability to Sanofi to seize external growth opportunities and finalize related transactions, the evolution of exchange rates and interest rates, the instability of economic and market conditions, cost control initiatives and their evolution, the impact that pandemics or any other global crisis could have on Sanofi, its customers, suppliers and partners and their financial situation, as well as on its employees and on the global economy. These risks and uncertainties also include those that are developed or identified in public documents filed by Sanofi with the AMF and the SEC, including those listed in the “Risk Factors” and “Forward-Looking Statements” sections of the Document. 2023 universal registration of Sanofi, which was filed with the AMF as well as in the sections “Risk Factors” and “Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements” of the 2023 annual report on Form 20-F of Sanofi, which was filed with the SEC. Sanofi makes no commitment to update forward-looking information and statements subject to applicable regulations, in particular articles 223-1 et seq. of the general regulations of the Financial Markets Authority.
Attachment
