The government is ready to unleash billions of pesos in its bid to achieve vaccine security as the country attracts more pharmaceutical companies for the production of vaccines in the country.
Carlito Galvez Jr., chief implementer of the Naitonal Task Force Against COVID-19 told the Vaccine Summit organized by business groups on Friday President Duterte has ordered the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to release billions of pesos to achieve manufacturing capability of vaccines not just against COVID-19 but also on non-COVID.
Galvez said probable investors can tap either public-private partnership or government-to-government transactions in producing vaccines here.
Galvez said government is expediting the construction and establishment in Clark of a fill and finish factory, which will be the initial stage for the local production of COVID vaccines.
He said government is also coordinating with pharmaceutical companies like United Laboratories which has earlier expressed interest to produce vaccines; Moderna on the production of boosters in Clark; an Indian company which is in talks with a local pharmaceutical group; and with the MVP Group which has ongoing discussions with a South Korean firm for the production of 40 million anti-COVID vaccines annually.
Galvez also said representatives of government and of an Israeli company will meet on May 18 for the latter’s proposal of a clinical trial for the production of an oral vaccine.
“To survive the pandemic and the next, we need vaccine security, particularly the manufacture of second and third-generation vaccines that can prevent and handle mutations and variants,” said Galvez adding the Philippines lost its glory in manufacturing vaccines when in 1939 it produced and donated vaccines to China.
