Zambia signs US$213 million vaccine deal with Chinese firm, starting with cholera doses

The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) has signed a joint venture agreement with Jijia (Beijing) International Medical Technology to develop ZAMVAX Limited, a local vaccine company. IDC will hold 60 percent of the company and Jijia 40 percent, IDC Chief Executive Officer Cornwell Muleya said at the signing in Lusaka on Monday. Mr Muleya put the total project at about US$213 million. The first phase will cost about US$24.13 million and the second about US$189 million. The first phase is an oral cholera vaccine fill-and-finish facility at the Lusaka South Multi-Facility Economic Zone, with capacity of up to 20 million doses a year. Half is intended for Zambia and half for export, subject to regulatory approvals and market access. A fill-and-finish plant processes and packages vaccine rather than making it from the start. Local production of the antigen, the vaccine's active component, is planned for a later phase. The wider plan could also extend to paediatric and animal vaccines, subject to feasibility assessments, financing and approvals. "For IDC, success will mean more than a completed factory," Mr Muleya said. "It will mean Zambian professionals with the skills to operate it, vaccines that meet the required standards, and a business capable of sustaining reliable supply." Jijia General Manager Su Yong Lin said the partnership is about supporting Zambia's healthcare sector and improving health security across Africa, not only about investment. ## Background Mr Muleya said the project was driven in part by Zambia's recurring cholera outbreaks and the need to respond locally to public health emergencies. The 2023-2024 outbreak brought more than 20,000 cases and nearly 700 deaths, according to President Hichilema. The deal follows a memorandum of understanding signed at State House in October 2024. That agreement described a US$37 million first phase producing three million doses. ## Why it matters Cholera outbreaks hit Zambians who live without safe water