Vestergaard Sàrl (www.Vestergaard.com) and Harvestfield Industries Limited today marked a historic milestone with the ground-breaking of a first-of-its-kind joint venture to transform malaria prevention and strengthen health security through direct investment in mosquito net manufacturing in Nigeria. The new joint venture, named SNG Health, will manufacture PermaNet® Dual, Vestergaard’s latest, dual active-ingredient pyrethroid-chlorfenapyr net designed to combat insecticide resistance. Production at the state-of-the-art facility is scheduled to begin in April 2026, with at-scale annual capacity of 10 million nets, creating 600 skilled jobs.

The ground-breaking ceremony took place at the site in Ogun State, with contributions from Dr Abdu Mukhtar, National Coordinator of the President’s Value Chain Initiative (PVAC); Dr Godwin Ntadom, Director of Public Health at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare; Dr Nnenna Ogbulafor, Director and National Coordinator of the National Malaria Elimination Programme; Ms Cornelia Camenzind, Consul General, Consulate General of Switzerland in Lagos, Nigeria; and Mr Onoriode Ezire, Task Team Leader, World Bank Nigeria.

Dr Abdu Mukhtar, National Coordinator of PVAC, said: “Nigeria is signalling that we are ready to lead the next frontier of malaria control in West Africa. This facility is a direct outcome of the Federal Government’s commitment to industrialize our health sector and anchor critical health products within the country. Every mosquito net produced here represents a Nigerian job, a Nigerian skill strengthened, and value created within our economy. This joint venture between Vestergaard and Harvestfield shows what responsible, future-focused partnership looks like. Today’s ground-breaking reaffirms our determination to ensure that lifesaving tools like PermaNet Dual are manufactured at scale, to global standards, and with long-term sustainability built into the system.”

Nigeria shoulders the world’s highest malaria burden, accounting for a quarter of all global cases and tragically, two out of every five children lost to malaria are Nigerian. While these are daunting statistics, new evidence from the Malaria Atlas Project shows we know what works: insecticide-treated nets have been instrumental in the fight against malaria, responsible for 72% of all malaria cases prevented (https://apo-opa.co/3KjuMEr) globally between 2000 and 2024. Notably, dual active-ingredient nets including PermaNet Dual have alone stopped 40 million cases from 2019 to 2024. These findings underscore that, though the challenge is immense, scaling up access to these proven, life-saving tools can unlock progress towards both national and global malaria control targets.

In March 2024, Nigeria signed the Yaoundé Declaration, pledging that “no one should die from malaria given the tools and systems available.” Today’s ground-breaking ceremony turns that pledge into action, building on the momentum from the memorandum of understanding (https://apo-opa.co/3KjuNbt) that was signed between the Nigerian Ministry of Health and Vestergaard last year, and turning technological advancements into tangible progress for a malaria-free generation.

Amar Ali, CEO of Vestergaard, said: “This facility embodies Vestergaard’s commitment to long-term partnership with Nigeria, demonstrating that private sector leadership can drive lasting impact. By directly investing in local production of PermaNet Dual—and putting our brand’s reputation behind this venture—we are not only delivering world-class innovation, but also ensuring families across Nigeria have quality protection against malaria. We believe that responsible enterprise must support African leadership in health by investing in local systems, training professionals and strengthening the capacity needed for countries to have the autonomy to protect the health of their own people.”

Martins Awofisayo, CEO of Harvestfield Industries, said: “Today marks an important step in strengthening Nigeria’s health security and industrial capacity. By partnering with Vestergaard to establish this facility in Nigeria, we are creating a reliable local source of world-class mosquito nets that will support malaria prevention efforts across the country. This investment is a testament to our commitment to saving lives, empowering communities, and building a sustainable manufacturing base for essential public health tools.”

Prosper Ndayiragije, Managing Director, SNG Health, said: “Today's ground-breaking opens a new chapter of malaria control for Nigeria, underlining this country's steadfast commitment to defeating this devastating disease. We are honoured to have the unwavering support of PVAC as we work together with Vestergaard and Harvestfield to make this initiative a reality. By manufacturing Vestergaard's latest mosquito net innovation – PermaNet Dual – we are committed to doing our part to ensure that no Nigerian family will have to endure the burden of malaria in the future.”