The Danish biochemistry firm Bavarian Nordic announced on Saturday it would expand the supply and manufacture of its smallpox and mpox vaccine to Africa, where an outbreak of a severe variant of the disease has claimed hundreds of lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and resulted in the Africa CDC and WHO declaring continental and international Public Health Emergencies.

So far in 2024, more than 8,700 mpox cases and over 400 deaths have been reported across seven African countries, 96 percent of which have occurred in the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to a report in June from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

On Friday, Bavarian Nordic had sought approval from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to extend its smallpox and mpox vaccine to children from 12 to 17 years, after a clinical study showed similar immune and safety results in children as adults.

Bavarian Nordic is preparing for a clinical trial to assess the mpox vaccine viability in children from 2 to 12 years of age in the DRC and Uganda later this year, said the company in a press release.

The mpox vaccine is not available in African countries, but Bavarian Nordic said that this trial, partially funded by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), may eventually support the vaccine’s approval in the region.

“Children and adolescents are disproportionally affected by mpox in the ongoing outbreak in Africa, highlighting the importance and urgency to broaden the access to vaccines and therapies for this vulnerable population,” said Paul Chaplin, President and Chief Executive Officer of Bavarian Nordic in a press release.

Bavarian Nordic’s Copenhagen-listed shares jumped 18.5 percent to 285 Danish crowns after the announcement. Over the last five sessions, the stock is up 46 percent.

During the 2022-2023 mpox outbreak, Bavarian Nordic’s mpox vaccine was granted an Emergency Use Authorization by the U.S. FDA for both pre- and post-exposure use in adolescents, and the company expanded access to the vaccine, supplying more than 15 million doses to 76 countries.

Since, the Danish firm has built a vaccine inventory that can provide a surge capacity for potential outbreaks. The company has told Africa CDC that it can manufacture 10 million doses by the end of 2025, in addition to current orders, and could already supply up to 2 million doses this year.

Africa is currently tackling one of the largest and deadliest known mpox outbreak to date, with children accounting for the majority of infections and deaths. Along with DRC, cases have also been confirmed in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Ghana, Liberia and South Africa.

Mpox was first identified in the DR Congo in 1970. In most cases, mpox symptoms – typically fever and headache, followed by painful lesions – resolve within a few weeks.

However, for some, mpox can lead to medical complications, such as bronchopneumonia, sepsis, encephalitis, loss of vision, or death. The mpox virus strain behind the current outbreak, known as clade I, is estimated to be fatal in up to 10 percent of cases.

Bavarian Nordic specializes in the development, production and distribution of vaccines against infectious diseases in connection with cancer treatment, as well as Ebola and cervical cancer.

Their biggest market is in Europe and North America and they are headquartered in Kvistgaard, Denmark.

Bavarian Nordic’s is the only mpox vaccine approved in the U.S., Canada, Switzerland, the EU/EEA and the UK, where it is part of the countries’ national biological preparedness.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) currently recommends two vaccines to prevent mpox: one by Bavarian Nordic and one by U.S. pharmaceutical company Emergent Biosolutions.

Bavarian Nordic will announce its second quarter results on 22 August.

The ride app Uber is returning to Denmark in 2025, a country it previously operated in, with a different business model adapted to the Danish market.

In light of the changes, the trade union 3F welcomed the company back. The union had been one of Uber’s biggest critics in Denmark under its previous model. 

“I think Uber has turned the corner. You are allowed to become wiser. When they come, it’s probably because they want to comply with the Danish rules of the game,” said secretary of negotiations at 3F Transport Jørn Hedengran.

Uber pulled out of Denmark in 2017 amid accusations of social dumping. A review by the Tax Office subsequently showed that 99 percent of the country’s almost 1,200 Uber drivers had failed to report their income from driving.

Uber’s business model was also found to be in violation of the taxi act, and in 2020 the company paid a fine of DKK 25 million for its operations in Denmark.

When Uber stopped doing business in Denmark the driving service had 300,000 users in Denmark, according to Uber.

Many Danes still have Uber’s app on their mobiles because they use it frequently in other countries.

But, from the beginning of next year, when they order a ride via the Uber app in Denmark, the car will come from the Copenhagen taxi company Drivr, and will cost the same as an ordinary Danish rental car.

“We bring the best of both worlds into this partnership. It is Uber’s software platform, where they have millions of users, combined with our knowledge of Copenhagen, where we drive and serve customers on a daily basis” said director at Drivr Bo Svane.

Uber’s collaboration with Drivr mirrors a similar approach they have taken in other countries.

“We do it in many places in Europe. We find a local partner who can help us with the things we need. In this case it is drivers and local knowledge. And then we contribute with our app,” said regional manager of Uber in Northern Europe Maurits Schönfeld.

Carlsberg has taken full control of its business in India and Nepal, agreeing to buy out its Singaporean partner Khetan Group for a total of USD 744 million, the the Danish brewing giant has confirmed.

Carlsberg announced on August 2 its intentions to buy a 33.33 percent stake in Carlsberg South Asia from Singaporean partner CSAPL Holdings, along with stakes in underlying companies, with the deal expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of this year.

After the sale, Carlsberg will own 100 percent of the business in India and 99.94 percent of the business in Nepal, according to a company press release.

Carlsberg and Khetan have been embroiled in a long-standing dispute that emerged in 2019, when Carlsberg India board members from Khetan appealed to the Indian government to investigate what they said was Carlsberg’s flouting of laws on trade discounts, advertisement and sales promotion, according to Reuters.

Carlsberg’s CEO Jacob Aarup-Andersen said he was pleased to have reached an “amicable agreement” with CSAPL, and that the buy-out would open new opportunities in India.

“We can now accelerate investments to capture the long-term growth opportunities in this exciting market,” he said.

In a new interview with Finans on Thursday, Aarup-Andersen said that Khetan Group had “held back on investments”, and looked ahead to taking Carlsberg “beyond the Steppes”.

The Danish company currently controls around 17 percent of India’s drinks market.

A hearing at a Greenlandic court will today decide whether the well-known Canadian-American environmental activist Paul Watson, co -founder of Greenpeace, will continue to be held in custody with a view to extradition to Japan, which has had an international arrest warrant on him since 2010.

Watson, who also founded the activist conservation group Sea Shepherd, had docked his ship in the Greenlandic capital Nuuk when he was arrested on 21 July for anti-whaling activities in Antarctica in 2010.

Watson himself does not want to be extradited, and his lawyers believe it would be a breach of EU conventions. 

The Captain Paul Watson Foundation, another organisation founded by the 73-year-old activist, responded in July that it was “completely shocked” by the arrest, “as the Red Notice had disappeared a few months ago”.

“We implore the Danish government to release Captain Watson and not entertain this politically-motivated request”, stated Locky MacLean, Ship Operation’s Director for CPWF in a press release.

In the three weeks since the arrest, the case has attracted close international attention. 

Several celebrities and political figures have voiced their support for Watson, including French President Emmanuel Macron, whose office issued an official statement urging Danish authorities not to extradite the prominent environmentalist, according to Le Monde.

Actor Pierce Brosnan published a widely-circulated letter to the Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen imploring her to “consider saving Paul Watson’s life”.

The hashtag #FreePaulWatson emerged on X, and the French actor turned animal rights activist Brigitte Bardot – a longtime patron of Watson’s work – told Le Parisien that he was “caught in a trap” and that the Japanese government had “launched a global manhunt”.

The hearing to decide whether Watson remains in custody will take place at Sermersooq Circuit Court this afternoon.