Moderna Halts Plans For Kenya Covid Vaccine Factory

Coronavirus vaccine maker Moderna is pausing plans to build a manufacturing facility in Kenya.

It had planned to start filling doses of its Covid-19 vaccine on the continent as early as 2023, but Moderna says it has not received any vaccine orders for Africa since 2022.

The firm says there has been a decline in demand for Covid-19 vaccines, and that it is resizing its manufacturing network to cut costs.

Moderna is spending about $4.5bn (£3.6bn) this year in research and development of other, new vaccines including for HIV, malaria and cancer.

Profits are higher for cancer treatments, which require more doses per patient than coronavirus vaccines.