Africa
Why Moderna Has Dropped Plans To Construct Vaccine Plant In Kenya
American drugmaker Moderna said on Thursday, April 12, that it had paused its plans to build an mRNA vaccine manufacturing plant in Kenya as demand for vaccines in Africa falls.
American pharmaceutical and biotechnology company Moderna has stopped its initial plans to construct a Messenger RNA (mRNA) manufacturing facility in Kenya due to uncertainties regarding the demand for mRNA vaccines in Africa.
The decline in demand for Covid-19 vaccines since the peak of the pandemic has made the project economically unviable.
“Moderna has not received any vaccine orders for Africa since 2022 and has faced the cancellation of previous orders, resulting in more than $1 billion in losses and write-downs,” Moderna said in a statement.
Despite facing significant losses from cancelled orders, the Massachusetts-based company remains committed to ensuring fair access to its coronavirus jab in Africa through its global manufacturing network.
Additionally, Moderna said that it is actively developing vaccines for diseases like HIV and malaria that disproportionately affect the continent.
“These initiatives are part of our broader commitment to help address global health challenges through our innovative mRNA technology. However, these investigational vaccines are at an early development stage,” the statement read.
Moderna believes it is prudent to pause the construction of the Kenyan facility to better align with evolving healthcare needs and vaccine demand in Africa.
The company acknowledges the support from the US and Kenyan governments and looks forward to future discussions on supporting Kenya’s healthcare system and advancing mRNA vaccines and therapeutics for African needs.
Kenya Insights allows guest blogging, if you want to be published on Kenya’s most authoritative and accurate blog, have an expose, news TIPS, story angles, human interest stories, drop us an email on [email protected] or via Telegram
Best Betting Sites in Kenya for 2026
How Safaricom Could Sell You Out To KRA
A Case That Refuses To Die: EABL Stake Sale Faces Fresh Challenge After Temporary Reprieve
The Kewota Racket: How Kenya’s Female Teachers Are Being Bled Dry
Raila-Linked Firm Benefited From G-to-G Fuel Import Deal
IEBC Registers Nearly 1 Million New Voters In 11 Days
Wattanga Fired Over Incompetence in Tech, Insiders Say
Why Kisumu Senator Tom Ojienda Is Suspected as the Hidden Hand Behind the Brutal Beating of Senator Godfrey Osotsi
Bia Tosha vs EABL: Why the Dispute Isn’t What You Might Have Been Told
The Lawyer at the Centre of Kenya’s State Machine: Eric Gumbo, the AG’s Bypassed Office, and the Half-Billion-Shilling Question
Forged Legacy: How Kaplan and Stratton’s Peter Gachuhi Is Accused of Faking a Top AG’s Will as State Claims Damning Evidence
‘They Will Eat You Alive’: Retired Teacher Warns Against Bashy African Credit as Sh500,000 Loan Spirals Into Sh1.5 Million Fight
THE HANDSHAKE THAT BECAME A NOOSE: How Tuju’s Alleged Intimate Access to EADB’s Yeda Apopo Produced a Sh294 Million Deal With No Written Contract, and Why That Trust Destroyed an Empire
Sold And Abandoned: How Diageo and Asahi Are Locking Kenya’s EABL Minority Shareholders Out Of East Africa’s Biggest Corporate Heist
How Firm Linked To Mombasa Tycoon Jaffer Was Allowed To Import Fuel At Bloated Price And Set To Make Billions In Profits From Iranian War Crisis In Kenya
Poison at the Pump: How Kenya’s Fuel Marking System May Be Exposing Millions to Cancer-Causing Chemicals
The Teflon Company: How Gulf Energy’s Insiders Built Billions on Kenya’s Fuel, and Walked Away Clean
Men Linked to Akasha Drug Dynasty Charged With Death Threats and Assault at Nairobi Nightclub
THE ZAKHEM-ECOBANK MACHINE: How Kenya’s Courts Were Weaponised to Drain a State Corporation of Over KES 78 Billion
Mombasa Lawyer Exposed In Sh600 Million Alleged Double-Dealing Diani Property Transaction
-
Investigations2 weeks agoForged Legacy: How Kaplan and Stratton’s Peter Gachuhi Is Accused of Faking a Top AG’s Will as State Claims Damning Evidence
-
Business2 weeks agoSold And Abandoned: How Diageo and Asahi Are Locking Kenya’s EABL Minority Shareholders Out Of East Africa’s Biggest Corporate Heist
-
Business2 weeks agoHow Firm Linked To Mombasa Tycoon Jaffer Was Allowed To Import Fuel At Bloated Price And Set To Make Billions In Profits From Iranian War Crisis In Kenya
-
Business1 week agoPoison at the Pump: How Kenya’s Fuel Marking System May Be Exposing Millions to Cancer-Causing Chemicals
-
Investigations1 week agoThe Teflon Company: How Gulf Energy’s Insiders Built Billions on Kenya’s Fuel, and Walked Away Clean
-
Investigations1 week agoTHE ZAKHEM-ECOBANK MACHINE: How Kenya’s Courts Were Weaponised to Drain a State Corporation of Over KES 78 Billion
-
News5 days agoMombasa Lawyer Exposed In Sh600 Million Alleged Double-Dealing Diani Property Transaction
-
Investigations2 weeks agoInside Nyayo House: The Kitchen Cartel That Demands Sh100,000 for a Stove