Zambia to host region's largest vaccine plant

Health Minister Chitalu Chilufya in a high level meeting Chinese counterpart Bin Li in Beijing. Picture By Stanslous Ngosa.

By NDUBI MVULA
THE Chinese Government will construct a dedicated National Public Health Laboratory that will serve both as a national and southern African regional reference laboratory.
The facility will enhance the detection of high risk pathogens (infections) using modern techniques.
Chinese Minister of National Health and Family Planning Commission Dr Li Bin said establishing the National Public Health Laboratory will serve as reference facility for the Africa CDC Southern Africa
Regional Collaborating Centre.
This came to light when Dr Li held bilateral health cooperation meeting with her Zambian counterpart Dr Chitalu Chilufya.
In a media release obtained from Ministry of Health Head of Communications and External Relations Stanslous Ngosa, Dr Li believes that close collaboration between the two countries will assist the building of Africa CDC and strengthen African countries capacity for public health services.
She said China will provide experts to work with Zambian counterparts over a period of time to transfer skills and knowledge to technical staff at the National Public Health Institute.
Dr Li said China will help Zambia attain one of her legacy goals of eliminating Malaria by 2030 and will also provide the expertise to fight malaria, as doing so will further enhance the bilateral health cooperation between the two countries.
And Dr Chilufya expressed gratitude at the Chinese Government’s gesture to help Zambia strengthen her health systems adding that the move will cement and take bilateral relations to another level beyond business but brotherhood.
Dr Chilufya said the support to the health sector will contribute to the attainment of Universal Health Coverage.
He said capacity building in emergency response and surgery as well as provision of surgical equipment and supplies will significantly improve the health systems.
Dr Chilufya has thanked the Chinese for showing interest to support various fields of nuclear science to improve electricity supply, medical treatment, irradiation processing and manufacturing of medical supplies among others.
Meanwhile, one of Chinese leading pharmaceutical companies, China Sinopharm International Corporation has partnered with the Ministry of Health to construct Vaccines and Medicines Company in Zambia.
The construction works will start as soon as the technical discussions are concluded and Memorandum of Understanding signed.
Some of the vaccines to be produced includes yellow, bOPV, HepB (birth Dose), IPV, Sabin Strain, Rota (3-Valent) Measles and HPV.
A Zambian delegation led by Zambia National Public Health Institute Director Dr Victor Mukonka are on a 10 day bilateral technical discussions on areas of collaboration and cooperation with the China
CDC.
Those in the delegation include Dr Kunda Musonda Head Laboratory Systems and Networking, Dr Muzala Kapina Head National Surveillance and Disease Intelligence and Dr Andrew Silumesi Director Public Health MoH.
The rest are Prof Aaron Mweene University of Zambia School of Veterinary and Dr Modest Mulenga Director Tropical Diseases Research Centre.