Strengthening regional vaccine manufacturing and creating the conditions needed to make production sustainable were at the centre of discussions as the Global Coalition for Local and Regional Production, Innovation and Equitable Access participated in the 27th Annual General Meeting of the Developing Countries Vaccine Manufacturers Network (DCVMN), held in Beijing, China, from 22 to 24 September.
Marco Nascimento, Assistant Executive Secretary of the Global Coalition, represented the initiative at the meeting and participated in a panel addressing the opportunities for regional vaccine manufacturing and the tools needed to translate manufacturing capacity into sustainable production.
“It was very encouraging to notice that the vision promoted by the Global Coalition is shared by many of the participants of this event,” Nascimento said. He also noted that several members of the Coalition’s Advisory Committee participated in the same discussion.
Building sustainable vaccine manufacturing ecosystems
The meeting brought together vaccine manufacturers from developing countries and major international health organizations under the theme “Transforming Innovation into Immunization.”
Discussions examined how innovation can be translated into vaccines that reach populations, including through stronger financing, regulatory systems, technology transfer, skilled workforces and sustainable demand for locally and regionally produced vaccines.
DCVMN plays an important role in this landscape. The network is a voluntary alliance of more than 40 vaccine manufacturers from 15 developing countries, involved in the development, production and supply of more than 60 types of vaccines to 170 countries.
According to DCVMN, its members now supply more than 70% of vaccines used across low- and middle-income countries.
The discussions in Beijing also highlighted challenges that closely align with the Global Coalition’s priorities.
Participants addressed the need to build capabilities across the entire production chain, strengthen regulatory systems and financing, develop skilled workforces and ensure predictable demand that can sustain manufacturing capacity between health emergencies.
Photo credit: DCVMN
The meeting also emphasized the growing importance of regional and global pooled procurement in supporting viable manufacturing ecosystems.
Global Coalition shares progress ahead of World Health Summit announcement
Nascimento also used the meeting to update participants on recent progress by the Global Coalition, including the selection process under its first Call for Proposals, focused on dengue.
He highlighted the role of the Advisory Committee in reviewing proposals and the Steering Committee in the next stages of the process, ahead of an announcement at the World Health Summit in Berlin in October.
The Coalition’s first Call for Proposals is one of its first concrete mechanisms for translating international commitments into collaborative projects.
It seeks initiatives that can strengthen local and regional production, innovation and equitable access to health technologies, with dengue selected as the first health challenge addressed by the Coalition.
The participation in the DCVMN Annual General Meeting reinforced the strong convergence between the Coalition’s objectives and the work of vaccine manufacturers in developing countries.
This includes strengthening regional production ecosystems, expanding access to innovation and building greater preparedness for future health emergencies.
