Denmark’s Novo Nordisk and South Africa’s Aspen sign a deal to produce insulin for African patients

By GERALD IMRAY
Associated Press

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has signed a deal with South Africa’s Aspen Pharmacare to produce human insulin specifically for diabetes patients in Africa where there is a dire need for the life-saving treatment. The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention welcomed the move Wednesday, saying it would “greatly impact the fight against diabetes” in Africa. Novo Nordisk has contracted Aspen to convert insulin into finished doses at its plant in Gqeberha, South Africa. They project the production of 16 million vials in 2024, the yearly amount needed to treat 1.1 million patients in Africa, and an increase to enough insulin to treat 4.1 million diabetes patients on the continent annually by 2026.