President Kagame and First Lady Jeannette Kagame on Monday, December 18, joined BioNTech CEO, Dr. Uğur Şahin, Presidents Macky Sall of Senegal, Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana, Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley of Barbados, and other leaders, for the inauguration of BioNTech’s mRNA vaccine manufacturing site, at Kigali Special Economic Zone.

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Other leaders present include Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, and representatives from multilateral institutions, and key stakeholders in the vaccine and public health ecosystem in Africa.

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Once completed, the Kigali manufacturing site will be the first end-to-end mRNA manufacturing facility in Africa and already features a completed manufacturing unit known as the BioNTainer, which are designed to manufacture a range of mRNA-based vaccines.

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The containers for the first BioNTainer arrived in Kigali in March, with the second shipment slated for delivery in 2024, when final construction on the manufacturing site is expected to be completed.

BioNTech plans to establish other manufacturing sites across the continent, including in Ghana and Senegal.

Prior to the inauguration, Kagame hosted a lunch for participating dignitaries, providing an opportunity for additional discussions on strengthening Africa’s vaccine manufacturing network.

In the evening, at Urugwiro Village, President Kagame will receive the President of the European Commission and her delegation for bilateral discussions on strengthening existing partnerships between Rwanda and the European Union.

President Kagame and President von der Leyen will also witness the signing of two agreements in areas of health, trade and investment, before they address members of the press.