Moderna picks a Kenyan site for mRNA manufacturing

Also in this week's C&EN, this manufacturing news (article by by Michael McCoy):

Moderna picks Kenya for African mRNA facility

Moderna says it will build a messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics plant in Kenya at a cost of up to $500 million. The facility will make mRNA active ingredients and could be expanded to produce finished therapies such as Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine. The firm’s announcement advances a promise it made in October 2021 to build an mRNA facility somewhere in Africa. Last month, BioNTech, which with Pfizer produces another mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, said it would establish modular production systems in Africa.

Watching the growth of manufacturing of all different kinds in Africa is really cool; here's hoping for more.  

Dow invests in Kenyan plastics recycling

In this week's Chemical and Engineering News (article by Alexander Tullo): 

Dow is investing in the Kenyan plastics recycler Mr. Green Africa. The investment, Dow’s first in an African recycling firm, will allow Mr. Green Africa to expand in Kenya and elsewhere, creating 200 jobs and enabling it to recycle 90,000 metric tons of plastic waste over the next 4 years. The polymer maker and Mr. Green Africa plan to provide about 5,000 local waste pickers who collect plastic for recycling with better incentives, including bigger fees for plastic waste and local sorting centers. The two firms have collaborated since 2019.

I think it is really cool to see more and more manufacturing in Africa.