BRUSSELS, June 22 (Xinhua) -- The European Union is set to invest 890 million euros (940 million U.S. dollars) in vaccine and drug production in Latin America and Caribbean countries, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday.

       In a joint statement with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, von der Leyen said the new partnership will involve sharing knowledge and technologies, as well as the creation of a robust regulatory environment.

       The move should boost Latin America's manufacturing capacity, foster equitable access to safe, effective and affordable health products, and help strengthen health resilience in the region to tackle endemic and emerging diseases, said the Commission.

       From the autumn, events will be organized to foster collaborations between the EU's private sector and businesses in Latin America.

       The partnership will also help universities, research centers and scientists to work together, under the research and innovation program Horizon Europe.

       The partnership follows a similar initiative which was launched last year on manufacturing and access to vaccines, medicines and health technologies in Africa. The 1 billion euro initiative was announced by von der Leyen at the G20 summit in Rome. (1 euro=1.06 U.S. dollars)