From our sub-Saharan Africa headquarters located in Johannesburg, South Africa, for more than 70 years, Pfizer has been delivering life-changing breakthroughs to the people of South Africa. Guided by our values and the three pillars of innovation, investing and safeguarding, we work with Healthcare Practitioners, Policy Makers, Patient Groups and other members of civil society to serve the communities in which we live and work, broadening access to medicines and strengthening healthcare delivery for the people who need it most.
Living our values of courage, excellence, equity and joy, we are a diverse team of about 250 people working daily to provide all South Africans with access to global scientific innovation that can help them to live longer, better lives. Through our commitment to the national agenda, we are contributing to the development of a strong healthcare system, as well as growth of the knowledge economy in the interest of those who need to be empowered today and to the benefit of the generations to come.
Innovating
We innovate to help overcome South Africa’s
health and social challenges today and into the future
Pfizer’s global research
Pfizer’s global research focus is on cancer and respiratory diseases, which together account for 18% of deaths in South Africa.
Antifungal partnership programme
We established the Antifungal Partnership programme to address associated fungal infections among people living with HIV. Since its inception, we have donated almost $1.5 billion dollars’ worth of medicine to 63 countries in the world. This includes 1.3 million units of medication to South African patients.
Life uncensored
We established Life Uncensored, a patient-centred digital platform that creates a safe space for patients to seek credible medical information on sensitive topics related to men and women’s health. Since its inception, we have reached over 2.9 million people, earning multiple global accolades.
Investing
We invest in people and products that make real differences
Investing in diversity
Diversity makes us stronger. In support of societal transformation, we have committed ourselves to a journey of diversity and inclusion. We continually invest in our people and strive to ensure that our workforce is representative of the demographics of societies in which we operate. More than 60% of Pfizer’s leadership team is black and over 60% are women. Nearly three quarters (74%) of our entire workforce is made up of women.
Development of clinical research
We focus on contributing to the development of clinical research across our portfolio to get breakthroughs to our patients quicker. To achieve this, we commissioned 22 clinical trials in nine therapeutic areas in 2019. These were conducted across 85 investigator sites, enrolling almost 1,000 patients in total. South Africa is also 1 of 6 global sites selected for a Phase 3 trial of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate.
Public health enhancement fund
With South Africa facing a significant shortage of doctors and specialists who can treat the most pressing diseases, we have joined forces with key partners across industry and government through the Public Health Enhancement Fund (PHEF). In just a short space of time, the PHEF has produced 60 medical students, 20 PhD studies, and 7 MSc studies.
Safeguarding
Our solutions contribute to safeguarding the health and well-being of our nation
Investing in primary healthcare
Our investment in Unjani Clinics helps to ensure sustainable access to health for patients in resource constrained settings. We have helped to establish four clinics and supported a further 58 clinics with equipment. The initiative has created more 70 professional ‘nurse-preneurs’, resulting in permanent employment for at least 230 people, and has reached over one million patients to date.
Investing in anti-microbial stewardship
Microbial resistance has been identified as one the biggest threats to public health. Investing in anti-microbial resistance is key to establishing a sustainable healthcare system. In response to this global threat, Pfizer has invested in ATLAS, a global data surveillance app that physicians around the world can use to look up regional patterns of resistance to antibiotics. Understanding these patterns of resistance enables doctors to stay abreast of trends in antibiotic resistance as they emerge and ensures that we are better equipped to protect future generations from AMR threats.
Supporting local vaccine manufacturing
We have supported local vaccines manufacturing through the Biovac Technology Transfer partnership to promote security of supply of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines and contribute to job creation and the knowledge economy. By 2021, one million units of life-saving pneumococcal conjugate vaccines a year will be locally manufactured to protect South African children as part of the expanded programme on immunisation.
Improving vaccines coverage
More than one million infants, young children and adults were vaccinated with PCV13 in SSA in 2019. To improve vaccine uptake, Pfizer has partnered with the National Department of Health (NDOH), the Wits Health Consortium and the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) to conduct a country-wide immunization coverage survey.
Expanded programme on immunisation
In the face of COVID-19, many parents have become fearful of taking their children for their routine immunisations. In partnership with the NDOH and industry partners, Pfizer is supporting a mass media demand creation campaign for the Expanded Programme on Immunisation(EPI).