Vestergaard Sàrl has announced that Health Textiles Nigeria FZE is now operational, marking a major milestone in the fight against malaria and establishing Nigeria as a leading hub for the production of next-generation mosquito nets in Africa.
At scale, Health Textiles Nigeria will produce 10 million nets per year, employing more than 600 people in Nigeria.
The facility is the first in Nigeria to manufacture dual-active ingredient insecticide-treated mosquito nets (ITNs).
It will produce PermaNet® Dual – Vestergaard’s most advanced net designed to combat insecticide resistance, which was prequalified by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2023. Health Textiles Nigeria has been acknowledged by WHO as a Vestergaard production site.
As operations scale up, Health Textiles Nigeria represents a significant step forward in expanding access to one of the most effective tools available for malaria prevention. Support from the Government of Nigeria has been instrumental, symbolizing a shared commitment to strengthening malaria prevention through local initiatives.
Dr. Muhammad Ali Pate, Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare in Nigeria, said: “The commencement of local production of next-generation insecticide-treated nets is an important milestone for Nigeria’s health system and our fight against malaria. It also reflects our broader commitment to strengthening health security by building domestic capacity to manufacture the essential health products Nigerians need.
“Through partnerships that bring together global expertise, Nigerian talent and local production, we are building a more resilient healthcare value chain while creating skilled jobs and positioning Nigeria as a competitive manufacturing hub for Africa.”
This progress comes at a pivotal time in the global fight against malaria. Since 2000, ITNs including PermaNet Dual have been responsible for averting 1.13 billion cases. Yet malaria remains a significant global health threat, particularly for women and young children, with an estimated 282 million cases and 610,000 deaths recorded by WHO globally in 2024. Africa remains hardest hit by malaria, and Nigeria accounts for a quarter of the world’s cases.
Health Textiles Nigeria responds to this urgent need by expanding local capacity and expertise to produce life-saving malaria prevention tools, fulfilling the vision set out in a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed in 2024 between Vestergaard and the Presidential Initiative for Unlocking the Healthcare Value Chain (PVAC).
The agreement, which focuses on strengthening local production capacity, establishes Nigeria as West Africa’s first manufacturing hub for dual active-ingredient mosquito nets.
Dr Abdu Mukhtar, National Coordinator of PVAC, said: “This milestone demonstrates what is possible when investment, technology transfer and government policy are deliberately aligned to build local manufacturing capability. When PVAC and Vestergaard signed the MOU in 2024, the objective was not simply to attract investment, but to translate partnership into productive capacity in Nigeria. Seeing Nigerian professionals trained, production underway and a pathway established to manufacture at scale is exactly the kind of outcome we want to replicate across the healthcare value chain.”
Health Textiles Nigeria is wholly owned by Vestergaard, a global leader in malaria prevention that has supplied approximately one-third of all insecticide-treated nets publicly procured worldwide since 2000.
The company brings decades of manufacturing expertise, rigorous quality assurance systems and a proven track record in developing and scaling innovative vector-control technologies that have helped protect millions of people from malaria.
Amar Ali, CEO of Vestergaard, said: “Today we welcome the start of a new chapter in Africa’s fight against malaria, and we thank Minister Pate for his leadership and the unwavering support of the Nigerian government. By combining Nigerian talent with world-class manufacturing and Vestergaard’s deep expertise in innovative malaria prevention tools, Health Textiles Nigeria will deliver the highest standards of quality, compliance and performance. We believe this facility can become a benchmark for malaria prevention manufacturing in Africa and help ensure that life-saving mosquito nets are produced closer to the communities that need them most.”
Health Textiles Nigeria is placing quality, training and compliance at the heart of its operations. The company has already recruited around 80 employees, with rigorous training covering manufacturing excellence, product quality, health and safety, and regulatory compliance ongoing.
As production expands, the facility is expected to create additional employment opportunities while developing a highly skilled workforce capable of supporting world-class health-product manufacturing.
The facility builds on Vestergaard’s decades of commitment to innovation, quality, and delivering practical solutions for malaria prevention. Every aspect of production is designed to meet the company’s stringent global standards, ensuring that PermaNet Dual manufactured in Nigeria delivers the performance, reliability and quality that health programmes around the world depend on.
According to the report distributed by the APO Group on behalf of Vestergaard Sàrl, as countries across Africa increasingly prioritize local manufacturing of essential health products, Health Textiles Nigeria demonstrates how international expertise and local capability can combine to strengthen supply chains, create skilled jobs and improve access to critical health interventions.
With production now underway, the first commercial orders are expected to be fulfilled in the coming months.
GIK/APA