KUALA LUMPUR – Pharmaniaga Bhd has set up a large team prepared to distribute Covid-19 vaccines, which are expected to be ready by the first quarter of 2021 as soon as they receive the go-ahead from the government.
Group managing director Datuk Zulkarnain Md Eusope said that the government-linked company’s team of 400 personnel skilled in logistics and distribution will work out of five godowns located in Selangor, Penang, Sabah, and Sarawak.
Zulkarnain said the company will focus on the safety and security of vaccine distribution.
“The vaccines will be much sought-after products. As such, Pharmaniaga will tighten security at our godowns, during transportation, and at storage locations to avoid unwanted situations,” he said.
He said deliveries will be made via the Just-in-Time method to hospitals – that is, according to capacity and vaccination schedules determined by the government, to prevent excessive stockpiling at government hospital storage facilities.
The company will also make the necessary modifications to its factory, Pharmaniaga LifeScience Sdn Bhd in Puchong, to be able to carry out the bottle development process for the Covid-19 vaccine.
Pharmaniaga has six factories in Malaysia, namely Idaman Pharma Manufacturing Sdn Bhd in Sg Petani and in Sri Iskandar; Pharmaniaga Manufacturing Bhd in Bangi; Pharmaniaga LifeScience in Puchong; Paradigm Industry Sdn Bhd in Klang, and Bio-Collagen Technologies Sdn Bhd in Sri Kembangan.
It also has another factory, PT Errita Pharma in Bandung, Indonesia.
Zulkarnain said Pharmaniaga warehouses have sufficient capacity for vaccine storage with a temperature range of two to eight degrees Celsius.
“Our total warehouse capacity is close to 30 million vials at any one time,” he said.
Commenting on the halal status of the vaccines, he explained that the matter should be referred to the proper authorities.
“It should be noted that for any production of drugs and vaccines, halal certifications are issued on factory sites only after examination of the source of raw materials, work processes, and the issue of introduction of prohibited substances to the factory site.
“Generic drugs and vaccines are not allowed to be labelled with any halal certification,” he said, adding that Pharmaniaga has yet to receive any instructions on the matter.
Zulkarnain also noted that the appointment of any logistics and distribution company for the Covid-19 vaccines falls under the government’s prerogative.
On December 22, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced that the government had signed an agreement with pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca to obtain an additional 6.4 million doses of vaccines.
This means that the government now has 40% of vaccine supplies guaranteed through joint agreements with Covax, Pfizer, and AstraZeneca.
Through an agreement signed earlier with Covax and Pfizer, Malaysia was scheduled to receive supplies for 30% of the country’s population. – Bernama, December 28, 2020
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