ST.PETERSBURG (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th March, 2021) The Southern African Development Community (SADC) sees many potential cooperation opportunities with Russia in the pharmaceutical industry, including the production of COVID-19 vaccines, SADC Executive Secretary Stergomena Lawrence Tax said Friday.
"Opportunities in the pharmaceutical sphere are tremendous. It is one of the areas of our particular interest including manufacturing of some specific drugs including malaria drugs, tests and others, also vaccines including COVID-19. So in the pharmaceutical area, there is great potential and it could be a part of our industrialization drive. We are calling on the Russian companies to invest in the above-mentioned areas," Tax said at the plenary session of the first International Moscow-Africa 2021 online conference.
According to the SADC head, most African countries need strong and trusted partners if they want to advance on a path of economic and technological transformation.
"We are very keen to partner with Russia in upgrading skills, technology and innovation. We see a huge number of areas in which we can work together such as in infrastructure, energy, agriculture, pharmaceuticals and other areas," Tax noted.
The secretary added that the SADC member states were much dependent on raw materials from abroad, but could potentially produce their own in the future.
