Saudi Arabia to invest $3.4bn in vaccine and biomedical sector

Kingdom will initially focus on manufacturing basic child vaccines and insulin production

Saudi Arabia wants to become a hub for vaccine production. Reuters
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Saudi Arabia's Industry and Mineral Resources minister said on Friday that the country will invest $3.4 billion in the vaccine and biomedical sector.

Bandar Alkhorayef, the minister heading the newly established committee on vaccines and the biopharmaceutical industry, said the move is part of the kingdom's push towards achieving pharmaceutical security and making Saudi Arabia a more prominent hub for the sector, state news agency Spa reported.

The investments will be enacted in two phases: the first includes techniques for manufacturing basic child vaccines and insulin, while the second aims to localise the immunological and cancer drugs industry.

Saudi Arabia currently imports all its vaccines and biopharmaceutical drugs, the minister said.

He added that the vital medicines sector is the fastest growing among all pharmaceutical sectors, with an annual growth rate of 17 per cent.

Updated: June 24, 2022, 11:45 PM