Zambia, China sign MOU to establish African nation's 1st cholera vaccine plant

By James Kunda

LUSAKA, Zambia (AA) - Zambia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with China on Monday to establish the southern African nation's first cholera vaccine manufacturing plant.

The project’s first phase will cost $37 million, with about three million doses expected to be produced through a joint venture between Zambia's Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) and Jijia International Medical Technology Corporation.

Speaking during the signing ceremony for the agreement at State House in the capital Lusaka, Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema said the development was a key step in the country's quest to eradicate the disease, which took away productivity as a result of affecting citizens.

"We are also sending a signal that Zambia, Africa and the globe are able to work together. Zambia must be looked at as a center, as a location to manufacture for a bigger market. And if you look at the population of Africa, it is growing very rapidly," Hichilema was quoted as saying on state television.

Hichilema said he expected the project to be commercially viable, adding there was no room for bureaucracy in its implementation, as it was lifesaving.

He added that ahead of the manufacturing, China would donate about three million doses of the cholera vaccine.

Cholera is perennial in the southern African nation, especially during the rainy season, and while curable, it also claims lives.