In response to reductions in US foreign aid, Nigerian pharmaceutical company Codix Bio Ltd is gearing up to produce millions of HIV and malaria rapid diagnostic test kits at a new facility outside Lagos. The move aims to fill potential supply gaps in the local and regional markets, particularly as funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) continues to shrink.
The United States, historically the largest donor of humanitarian aid globally, has recently scaled back its foreign assistance, half of which is channelled through USAID. In 2024, US support to Nigeria stood at $740 million, largely focused on tackling malaria and HIV, and distributing vaccines across local health centres.
Although the full impact of the cuts on Nigeria remains unclear, the Nigerian government has indicated plans to raise domestic funds to sustain some of the donor-supported programmes.
Codix Bio’s general manager, Olanrewaju Balaja, revealed that the company will begin rolling out the test kits later this month. The project is in collaboration with South Korean pharmaceutical firm SD Biosensor and benefits from support by the World Health Organisation.
The new facility, which has an initial annual production capacity of 147 million kits, is scalable to over 160 million units. According to Balaja, this capacity is sufficient to meet Nigeria’s internal demand based on USAID and PEPFAR supply data.
“From the statistics of what is supplied for a specific programme year, and looking at what we currently have in capacity for Nigeria, we have enough to meet the demand,” he said in an interview.
Balaja added that Codix Bio also has ambitions to expand its supply network across West and Sub-Saharan Africa. “We can go to West and Sub-Saharan Africa, including other African countries,” he said.
Nigeria carries the world’s highest burden of malaria, accounting for nearly 27% of global cases, according to the World Health Organisation. The country also has the fourth highest HIV burden globally, based on UNAIDS data.
“The focus was for us to be able to play in the field of supply of rapid diagnostic test kits for donor agencies, which particularly USAID was at the forefront,” Balaja said. He noted that both the Nigerian government and international partners such as the Global Fund are expected to purchase the locally manufactured test kits, supporting a sustainable supply chain in the face of uncertain donor funding.
As international aid becomes increasingly uncertain, Codix Bio’s initiative marks a significant step toward domestic health independence and regional medical resilience.
Melissa Enoch
Follow us on:
