Washington D.C. - October 10, 2024 - (PAHO) – In response to the growing need to strengthen vaccine production in Latin America and the Caribbean, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) led a workshop with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Regionalized Vaccine Production Collaborative (RVMC). Experts from different organizations met to analyze strategic information on the region's capabilities and identify opportunities for collaboration to strengthen vaccine innovation and production.
During the day, a “mapping of mappings” was conducted, i.e., a comprehensive analysis of the various research studies on regional capacities for vaccine innovation and production, as well as exploring possible opportunities for collaboration. The workshop brought together experts from USAID, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), PATH, the Inter-American Development Bank, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. National Security Council and Fiocruz.
In her opening remarks, the director of the Department of Innovation, Medicines and Health Technologies (IMT), Judit Rius Sanjuan, emphasized the strategic importance of this workshop. She noted that it is aligned with IMT's priorities to strengthen evidence-based decision making, thus fostering the development of a more robust and sustainable regional vaccine innovation and production ecosystem that can contribute to more equitable access.
This collaboration enabled to gather and analyze key strategic information that will guide PAHO's technical cooperation efforts to strengthen vaccine innovation and production in the region. In addition, this knowledge will be key to the research project that PAHO is carrying out together with Fiocruz, which seeks to generate strategic and applicable knowledge on the current and potential production capacities of vaccines in the region.
The Regional Innovation and Production Platform of PAHO's Department of Innovation and Access to Medicines and Health Technologies contributes to and complements the implementation of this strategy in the Americas and provides technical cooperation to Member States to strengthen regional innovation and production capacities.
This initiative was supported by Global Affairs Canada (GAC).
