In February 2022, the Ecuadorian Minister of Health, Ximena Garzón, visited the People’s Republic of China to attend various meetings geared towards strengthening cooperation in the area of public health. Following the visit, the Minister authorized the installation in Ecuador of a factory to manufacture Chinese-made vaccines against COVID-19 and other regular vaccines.
The agreement was signed with the pharmaceutical company Sinovac Life Science Co. Ltd, and will lead to Ecuador and China working together on three main lines of action to produce biologics. The first is the implementation of clinical trials in the country; the second is technical, scientific, and technological strengthening and transfer; and the third consists of a training and knowledge transfer system. The meeting was attended by Gao Qiang, General Manager of Sinovac; Jack Tang, Sinovac Operations Manager for Latin America and the Caribbean; Ximena Garzón, Minister of Public Health; Lorena Konanz Baquerizo, Minister of Production, Foreign Trade, Investment, and Fisheries; and Roberto Salas Guzmán, Technical Secretary of Public-Private Partnerships. During the signing of the agreement, the Minister mentioned that this scientific advance is a great achievement for Ecuador.
Main story:
El Comercio: Ecuador firma compromiso de cooperación con China para la producción de vacunas.