Addis Ababa, 04 November 2021 (ECA) - The United Nations Economic Commission of Africa (ECA), today held a virtual high level consultative forum on the creation and establishment of the regional pooled procurement database on select maternal neonatal and child health medicines. This consultative forum follows on the successful launch of the AfCFTA-anchored Pharmaceutical Initiative’s Centralized Pooled Procurement Mechanism (CPPM) which was held on July 29, 2021.
The objective of the forum was to advocate for the creation and establishment of the pooled procurement database e- platform, review the list of the maternal, neonatal and child health products, as well as to create awareness on the roles of pilot countries regarding the operationalization of the CPPM. The meeting provided a platform to discuss the creation of the Pooled Procurement Network (PPN), a platform that provides for staff involved in the procurement of health products to share information on procurement processes.
When delivering the keynote address, AfCFTA-anchored Pharmaceutical Initiative Project lead, Ms. Jane Karonga said that the global response to the Covid-19 pandemic exposed shortcomings and gaps in supply chain and health care systems. “Even though the AfCFTA-anchored Pharma Initiative was launched a year before the pandemic hit the world, the ground-breaking work that was undertaken on it showed the potential of what countries can achieve if they leverage the AfCFTA and AMA to scale-up local pharmaceutical production, influence price with pooled procurement arrangements and ensure harmonized regulatory framework and quality standards she said. She concluded by highlighting that the project’s three pillars were leveraged during the establishment of offshoots institutions such as African Vaccine Acquisition Trust (AVAT) and the African Medical Supplies Platform (AMSP), the first African owned online platform pooled procurement mechanism of its kind in Africa are true testimonies of the successes of the initiative.
The consultative forum was attended by senior government officials, procurement experts and the Ministry of Health Focal Points from the ten pilot project countries and a team of continental experts.
Pilot member States unanimously agreed that the concept of the Regional Maternal Neonatal and Child Health medicines database will be a game changer for the select pilot countries and inherently the continent. Operationalization of the database will create a conducive environment for pooling procurement processes to attract favorable prices in the short-medium term which will in turn create the much needed fiscal space for countries to further develop the health sector or any other sectors of the economy. They also agreed that national stakeholder alignment is critical for successful implementation.
At the end of the forum, member states appreciated the consultation and looked forward to future engagements on the implemenatation of AfCFTA-anchored Pharmaceutical Initiative.
Media contacts:
Segolame Evans (Ms.)
Regional Integration Section, RITD, ECA
AfCFTA-anchored Pharma Initiative
Email : segolame.evans@un.org
Issued by:
Communications Section
Economic Commission for Africa
PO Box 3001
Addis Ababa
Ethiopia
Tel: +251 11 551 5826
E-mail: eca-info@un.org