Company Opens Malaria Drug Factory in Uganda

Afro Alpine Pharma has started manufacturing artemisinin, which is used to make malaria drugs, at a newly opened $4 million facility in Kabale, Uganda, according to the Kampala-based newspaper New Vision.

The company told the newspaper that it expects to process more than 400 tons of Artemisia leaves monthly. Artemisinin is derived from Artemisia plants. The World Health Organization recommends the use of artemisinin-based combination therapies for treating malaria.

More than 5,000 local farmers have entered an agreement with the company to grow the plant, according to the New Vision article. The farmers will get free seedlings and could earn nearly $600 per harvest.

Afro Alpine Pharma says on its website that its mission is to produce locally grown, affordable malaria drugs for distribution in African and international markets.