Malaysia Aims To Produce First Local Human Vaccine by 2028

By Danial Martinus • 27 Jul 2026 in News

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In an effort to reduce its reliance on costly imported vaccines, Malaysia is aiming to produce its first human vaccine by the year 2028.

The first vaccine in this iniative is the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate (PCV13), which is an injection that protects against 13 strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria. It also prevents other illnesses, including pneumonia, meningitis, sepsis, blood infections, and ear and sinus infection.

But how will it be produced locally?

PCV13 will be produced by local pharmaceutical company Pharmaniaga Bhd

According to Science, Technology, and Innovation Minister Chang Lih Kang, Malaysia’s first local PCV13 vaccine will be produced as part of a technology transfer deal with a company in China. Malaysian pharmaceutical firm Pharmiaga Bhd will then take over its production locally.

As to which Chinese firm will be involved, details remain scarce at the time of writing.

Malaysia currently depends on vaccines imported from the US, Belgium, South Korea, Japan, France, Thailand, India, and Indonesia. According to the World Bank, Malaysia spent roughly US$275.4 million (over RM1.1 billion) in 2022 on human vaccine imports.

Aside from cutting costs, Chang argues a locally produced vaccine will also help Malaysia better prepare for future health crises, something that’s especially relevant after learnings from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The final deadline for a locally produced vaccine is 2030, but Chang thinks the country can achieve this goal by the year 2028.

Imported PCV13 vaccines are provided to Malaysian children born on or after 1 January 2020 for free at all government clinics. Malaysian adults, on the other hand, will have to fork out RM550 to RM650 for the same jab.

Malaysia’s also working on producing a local hexavalent vaccine for children, which combines six different vaccines in a single dose, aimed at protecting children against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, Haemophilus influenzae type B, and hepatitis B.