India’s Poonawallas millionaire commits $ 66 million to Oxford University | Philanthropy News

The world’s largest vaccine manufacturer set up a research campus at the university’s main campus for vaccine research teams.

The Indian Serum Institute (SII) vaccine manufacturer has promised £ 50 million ($ 66.2 million) to Oxford University to set up a research campus that would also house the institute behind the AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 shooting.

The investment was made through the Indian company’s Serum Life Sciences unit, Oxford University said on Wednesday.

The new Poonawalla Vaccines Research Building would be named in honor of the billions of SII owners. The new facility will house more than 300 research scientists and will help expand the university’s major vaccine development programs, a press release said.

The donation will be the largest gift the university has ever made for vaccine research, the statement added.

The commitment is based on a partnership between Oxford University, AstraZeneca and SII, the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer and producer of a version of the British duo’s COVID-19 film for low- and middle-income countries.

SII has also agreed with the Jenner Institute, behind the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, to produce and develop Jenner’s large-scale R21 / Matrix-M malaria shot. The shot is in the final stages of testing.

SII was founded in 1966 in the western Indian city of Pune by Cyrus Poonawallak, the son of a horse breeder and the fifth richest person in India. According to Forbes. In 2019, Cyrus was also awarded an honorary degree by Oxford University.

He is currently run by his son Adar Poonawalla, who runs his wife Natasha Poonawalla Serum Life Sciences. With a passion for luxury cars and racing horses, the pair are often seen rubbing off on Hollywood and Bollywood stars.

Poonawallak in September invest £ 50 million ($ 66.2 million) at Oxford Biomedic to fund the development of a COVID-19 shooting plant.