Regulatory authorities meet to promote health care
Heads of medicine regulatory authorities in West Africa are meeting in Accra to deliberate on best practices in the by Red AdBlocker" href="#">pharmaceutical industry Advertisement
The Minister of Health, Dr Kwaku Agyeman-Mensah, who opened the three-day sub-regional meeting, said the project marked yet another milestone in the realisation of the ECOWAS Protocol.
“Through the launch of this project, public health services will be further improved by facilitating access to quality, safe and efficacious medicines,” he said.
Background
Members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) share a common disease burden, with ripple effects of high morbidity and mortality rates.
The lack of access to quality, safe and affordable medicines for the treatment of these diseases has been a major challenge in many West African countries.
This is due to several factors, including the lack of transparency in the process for medicine registration, poor manufacturing practices, inefficient quality control of pharmaceuticals, inadequate procurement mechanisms, inadequate distribution systems and limited public financing.
The Accra meeting has provided a platform for the heads of medicine regulatory authorities to share ideas on how best to address these challenges.
It is also being attended by representatives of the development partners, including the World Health Organisation, the World Bank and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
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Benefits
Among other benefits, the project will help streamline the regulatory assessment process for new drug applications and reduce the time and resources needed for drug development in the sub-region.
It is also expected to prevent the duplication of clinical trials in humans and minimise the use of animal testing without compromising safety and effectiveness.
“For us as users of medicines, harmonisation requirements in the drug registration processes promote quicker access to medicines for patients,” Dr Agyeman-Mensah said.
He said access to quality, safe and efficacious medicine anywhere “is a critical component of healthcare delivery and initiatives such as harmonisation of medicine registration processes and procedures across the West African region should be lauded and supported in our collective quest for adequate by Red AdBlocker" href="#">health coverage
for all people in the region”.
Writer’s Email: kofi.yeboah@graphic.com.gh