Bisi Bright1,2, Chinedum Peace Babalola1,3,4,5,6, Nadia Adjoa Sam-Agudu1,7,8,9, Augustine Anayochukwu Onyeaghala1,10,11, Adebola Olatunji1,12, Ufuoma Aduh1,13, Patrick O Sobande1,14, Trevor A Crowell15,16, Yenew Kebede Tebeje17, Sunny Phillip1,7, Nicaise Ndembi1,7,8,17,18, Morenike Oluwatoyin Folayan19,20. 1. , COVID-19 Think Tank, Nigeria. 2. Live Well Initiative Academy Nigeria, Lagos, Nigeria. 3. Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. 4. Centre for Drug Discovery, Development & Production, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. 5. Genetics & Bioethics Unit, Institute of Advanced Medical Research & Training, College of Medicine, Ibadan, Nigeria. 6. College of Basic Medical Sciences, Chrisland University, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria. 7. Institute of Human Virology Nigeria, Abuja, Nigeria. 8. Institute of Human Virology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA. 9. Department of Paediatrics, University of Cape Coast School of Medical Sciences, Cape Coast, Ghana. 10. Unit of Clinical Chemistry, Department of Medical Laboratory Science, University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria. 11. Unit of Clinical Chemistry, Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Lead City University, Ibadan, Nigeria. 12. Fort Worth Internal Medicine, Fort Worth, TX, USA. 13. World Health Organisation, Asaba, Delta State, Nigeria. 14. Stephen's Pedi & Pulmonary Medicine, Fort Worth, TX, USA. 15. U.S. Military HIV Research Program, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD, USA. 16. Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Bethesda, MD, USA. 17. Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention, African Union Commission, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. 18. Kanazawa University, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kanazawa, Japan. 19. , COVID-19 Think Tank, Nigeria. toyinukpong@yahoo.co.uk. 20. Department of Child Dental Health, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. toyinukpong@yahoo.co.uk.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The COVID-19 pandemic is a biosecurity threat, and many resource-rich countries are stockpiling and/or making plans to secure supplies of vaccine, therapeutics, and diagnostics for their citizens. We review the products that are being investigated for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of COVID-19; discuss the challenges that countries in sub-Saharan Africa may face with access to COVID-19 vaccine, therapeutics, and diagnostics due to the limited capacity to manufacture them in Africa; and make recommendations on actions to mitigate these challenges and ensure health security in sub-Saharan Africa during this unprecedented pandemic and future public-health crises. MAIN BODY: Sub-Saharan Africa will not be self-reliant for COVID-19 vaccines when they are developed. It can, however, take advantage of existing initiatives aimed at supporting COVID-19 vaccine access to resource-limited settings such as partnership with AstraZeneca, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness and Innovation, the Global Alliance for Vaccine and Immunisation, the Serum Institute of India, and the World Health Organization's COVID-19 Technology Access Pool. Accessing effective COVID-19 therapeutics will also be a major challenge for countries in sub-Saharan Africa, as production of therapeutics is frequently geared towards profitable Western markets and is ill-adapted to sub-Saharan Africa realities. The region can benefit from pooled procurement of COVID-19 therapy by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in partnership with the African Union. If the use of convalescent plasma for the treatment of patients who are severely ill is found to be effective, access to the product will be minimally challenging since the region has a pool of recovered patients and human resources that can man supportive laboratories. The region also needs to drive the local development of rapid-test kits and other diagnostics for COVID-19. CONCLUSION: Access to vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics for COVID-19 will be a challenge for sub-Saharan Africans. This challenge should be confronted by collaborating with vaccine developers; pooled procurement of COVID-19 therapeutics; and local development of testing and diagnostic materials. The COVID-19 pandemic should be a wake-up call for sub-Saharan Africa to build vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics manufacturing capacity as one of the resources needed to address public-health crises.
OBJECTIVE: The COVID-19 pandemic is a biosecurity threat, and many resource-rich countries are stockpiling and/or making plans to secure supplies of vaccine, therapeutics, and diagnostics for their citizens. We review the products that are being investigated for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of COVID-19; discuss the challenges that countries in sub-Saharan Africa may face with access to COVID-19 vaccine, therapeutics, and diagnostics due to the limited capacity to manufacture them in Africa; and make recommendations on actions to mitigate these challenges and ensure health security in sub-Saharan Africa during this unprecedented pandemic and future public-health crises. MAIN BODY: Sub-Saharan Africa will not be self-reliant for COVID-19 vaccines when they are developed. It can, however, take advantage of existing initiatives aimed at supporting COVID-19 vaccine access to resource-limited settings such as partnership with AstraZeneca, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness and Innovation, the Global Alliance for Vaccine and Immunisation, the Serum Institute of India, and the World Health Organization's COVID-19 Technology Access Pool. Accessing effective COVID-19 therapeutics will also be a major challenge for countries in sub-Saharan Africa, as production of therapeutics is frequently geared towards profitable Western markets and is ill-adapted to sub-Saharan Africa realities. The region can benefit from pooled procurement of COVID-19 therapy by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in partnership with the African Union. If the use of convalescent plasma for the treatment of patients who are severely ill is found to be effective, access to the product will be minimally challenging since the region has a pool of recovered patients and human resources that can man supportive laboratories. The region also needs to drive the local development of rapid-test kits and other diagnostics for COVID-19. CONCLUSION: Access to vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics for COVID-19 will be a challenge for sub-Saharan Africans. This challenge should be confronted by collaborating with vaccine developers; pooled procurement of COVID-19 therapeutics; and local development of testing and diagnostic materials. The COVID-19 pandemic should be a wake-up call for sub-Saharan Africa to build vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics manufacturing capacity as one of the resources needed to address public-health crises.
Authors: John H Beigel; Kay M Tomashek; Lori E Dodd; Aneesh K Mehta; Barry S Zingman; Andre C Kalil; Elizabeth Hohmann; Helen Y Chu; Annie Luetkemeyer; Susan Kline; Diego Lopez de Castilla; Robert W Finberg; Kerry Dierberg; Victor Tapson; Lanny Hsieh; Thomas F Patterson; Roger Paredes; Daniel A Sweeney; William R Short; Giota Touloumi; David Chien Lye; Norio Ohmagari; Myoung-Don Oh; Guillermo M Ruiz-Palacios; Thomas Benfield; Gerd Fätkenheuer; Mark G Kortepeter; Robert L Atmar; C Buddy Creech; Jens Lundgren; Abdel G Babiker; Sarah Pett; James D Neaton; Timothy H Burgess; Tyler Bonnett; Michelle Green; Mat Makowski; Anu Osinusi; Seema Nayak; H Clifford Lane Journal: N Engl J Med Date: 2020-10-08 Impact factor: 91.245
Authors: Modupe Coker; Morenike O Folayan; Ian C Michelow; Regina E Oladokun; Nguavese Torbunde; Nadia A Sam-Agudu Journal: Pediatr Res Date: 2020-09-24 Impact factor: 3.756
Authors: Jean B Nachega; Nadia A Sam-Agudu; Rhoderick N Machekano; Philip J Rosenthal; Sonja Schell; Liesl de Waard; Adrie Bekker; Onesmus W Gachuno; John Kinuthia; Nancy Mwongeli; Samantha Budhram; Valerie Vannevel; Priya Somapillay; Hans W Prozesky; Jantjie Taljaard; Arifa Parker; Elizabeth Agyare; Akwasi Baafuor Opoku; Aminatu Umar Makarfi; Asara M Abdullahi; Chibueze Adirieje; Daniel Katuashi Ishoso; Michel Tshiasuma Pipo; Marc B Tshilanda; Christian Bongo-Pasi Nswe; John Ditekemena; Lovemore Nyasha Sigwadhi; Peter S Nyasulu; Michel P Hermans; Musa Sekikubo; Philippa Musoke; Christopher Nsereko; Evans K Agbeno; Michael Yaw Yeboah; Lawal W Umar; Mukanire Ntakwinja; Denis M Mukwege; Etienne Kajibwami Birindwa; Serge Zigabe Mushamuka; Emily R Smith; Edward J Mills; John Otokoye Otshudiema; Placide Mbala-Kingebeni; Jean-Jacques Muyembe Tamfum; Alimuddin Zumla; Aster Tsegaye; Alfred Mteta; Nelson K Sewankambo; Fatima Suleman; Prisca Adejumo; Jean R Anderson; Emilia V Noormahomed; Richard J Deckelbaum; Jeffrey S A Stringer; Abdon Mukalay; Taha E Taha; Mary Glenn Fowler; Judith N Wasserheit; Refiloe Masekela; John W Mellors; Mark J Siedner; Landon Myer; Andre-Pascal Kengne; Marcel Yotebieng; Lynne M Mofenson; Eduard Langenegger Journal: Clin Infect Dis Date: 2022-06-08 Impact factor: 20.999
Authors: Wilfred Ngwa; Beatrice W Addai; Isaac Adewole; Victoria Ainsworth; James Alaro; Olusegun I Alatise; Zipporah Ali; Benjamin O Anderson; Rose Anorlu; Stephen Avery; Prebo Barango; Noella Bih; Christopher M Booth; Otis W Brawley; Jean-Marie Dangou; Lynette Denny; Jennifer Dent; Shekinah N C Elmore; Ahmed Elzawawy; Diane Gashumba; Jennifer Geel; Katy Graef; Sumit Gupta; Serigne-Magueye Gueye; Nazik Hammad; Laila Hessissen; Andre M Ilbawi; Joyce Kambugu; Zisis Kozlakidis; Simon Manga; Lize Maree; Sulma I Mohammed; Susan Msadabwe; Miriam Mutebi; Annet Nakaganda; Ntokozo Ndlovu; Kingsley Ndoh; Jerry Ndumbalo; Mamsau Ngoma; Twalib Ngoma; Christian Ntizimira; Timothy R Rebbeck; Lorna Renner; Anya Romanoff; Fidel Rubagumya; Shahin Sayed; Shivani Sud; Hannah Simonds; Richard Sullivan; William Swanson; Verna Vanderpuye; Boateng Wiafe; David Kerr Journal: Lancet Oncol Date: 2022-05-09 Impact factor: 54.433
Authors: Ioasia Radvan; Folake Oluwayemisi Aliu; Anthony Bettee; Abdourahim Cisse; Sonnie Ziama Gbewo; Nicholas Olobio; Michel Sagno Journal: Int Health Date: 2022-09-21 Impact factor: 3.131
Authors: Silvia Ussai; Caterina Chillotti; Erminia Stochino; Arianna Deidda; Giovanni Ambu; Lorenzo Anania; Alberto Boccalini; Flavia Colombo; Alessandra Ferrari; Daniele Pala; Enrica Puddu; Giulia Rapallo; Marco Pistis Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2022-03-11 Impact factor: 3.390