At the 2023 Grand Challenges Annual Meeting in Dakar, Senegal, Bill Gates, Co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, unveiled substantial investments aimed at accelerating access to mRNA research and vaccine manufacturing technology, with a particular focus on supporting low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). These investments are poised to enhance LMICs’ capacity to develop high-quality vaccines on a larger scale.
Building upon more than two decades of experience collaborating with vaccine manufacturers in LMICs, the Gates Foundation recognizes the potential of recent scientific breakthroughs to create low-cost, high-quality health tools accessible to people worldwide. mRNA technology stands as a promising breakthrough for addressing infectious diseases like tuberculosis, malaria, and Lassa fever, which have a disproportionate impact on LMICs. This technology is expected to substantially reduce the costs associated with mRNA research and manufacturing, expanding access and closing critical healthcare gaps.
Dr. Muhammad Ali Pate, Nigeria’s Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare and a renowned global vaccine expert, praised the move, stating, “Putting innovative mRNA technology in the hands of researchers and manufacturers in Africa and around the world will help ensure more people benefit from next-generation vaccines. This collaboration is an encouraging step that will increase access to critical health technologies and help African countries develop vaccines that meet the needs of their people.”
The Gates Foundation announced a total of US$40 million in funding allocated to advance access to Quantoom Biosciences’ low-cost mRNA research and manufacturing platform. This platform, initially developed with an early-research Grand Challenges grant to parent company Univercells, will receive US$5 million each for adoption by the Institut Pasteur de Dakar (IPD) in Senegal and Biovac in South Africa. These research institutes, with extensive vaccine manufacturing expertise, will leverage the technology to develop locally relevant vaccines.
To further bolster this technology and reduce costs for commercialization, the Gates Foundation will provide US$20 million to Quantoom Biosciences. Additionally, US$10 million will be granted to other LMIC vaccine manufacturers, with specific recipients yet to be named. This funding builds on the foundation’s previous investment of US$55 million in mRNA manufacturing technology.
Dr. Amadou Sall, CEO of IPD, emphasized the importance of expanding vaccine discovery and manufacturing capabilities in Africa, saying, “Expanding our capacity to discover and manufacture affordable mRNA vaccines in Africa is an important and necessary step towards vaccine self-reliance in the region. We welcome this new funding, which will promote the development of lifesaving technologies on the continent while also contributing to global health security.”
mRNA vaccines offer streamlined research and manufacturing processes compared to traditional vaccines, empowering countries like Senegal and South Africa to autonomously develop low-cost, high-quality vaccines aligned with their health priorities.
Morena Makhoana, CEO of Biovac, highlighted the collaboration’s potential to address critical gaps in access to mRNA vaccines for diseases that disproportionately affect the world’s poorest populations. It also supports Biovac’s mission to establish end-to-end vaccine manufacturing capability in Africa for global supply.
Quantoom’s modular mRNA technology overcomes common challenges in current mRNA research and manufacturing methods, simplifying and cost-reducing vaccine production. This innovation could reduce vaccine production costs by over 50% compared to traditional mRNA technology while maintaining or even improving product quality.
Trevor Mundel, President of the Gates Foundation’s Global Health Division, emphasized the importance of removing access barriers for LMICs. By doing so, the foundation aims to extend the benefits of lifesaving health innovations to more people globally.
José Castillo, CEO of Quantoom Biosciences, expressed enthusiasm for the partnership with IPD and Biovac to scale the technology in Senegal and South Africa, ultimately increasing access to novel mRNA vaccines.
This funding expansion for Quantoom builds on an initial grant issued in 2016 to Univercells, responding to a Grand Challenges call for novel vaccine manufacturing interventions. Univercells focused on modular engineering principles to facilitate decentralized, small-footprint vaccine manufacturing.
IPD plans to utilize Univercells’ original vaccine manufacturing technology to produce essential measles and rubella vaccines, expanding the region’s capacity to conduct routine immunization campaigns.