How Afrigen’s Vaccine Hub is Reshaping the Industry

When Afrigen received an email from the WHO about joining a new mRNA tech-transfer hub, it was a lifeline for a struggling vaccine venture. The WHO’s plan was for a vaccine manufacturing giant to share its knowledge with the hub, which would then replicate and distribute that knowledge to other manufacturers globally. Despite having no mRNA experience, the Cape Town-based startup seized the opportunity and partnered with Biovac to pioneer Africa’s first homegrown mRNA vaccine efforts. After Moderna and Pfizer refused to help, Afrigen forged ahead alone, reverse-engineering a COVID-19 vaccine and sharing the technology with 14 countries. Although their version wasn’t mass-produced, the hub has become a model for decentralized vaccine production. Now, they’re pivoting to fight other infectious diseases like Rift Valley Fever to ensure they retain the capacity to produce mRNA vaccines in case of another pandemic.