DURBAN, South Africa — A top executive at Africa’s biggest drug company shared a few home truths with the continent’s health policymakers about the obstacles to local manufacturing at the Conference on Public Health in Africa (CPHIA) 2025. Aspen Pharmacare’s Dr Stavros Nicolaou blamed regulatory bottlenecks and procurement policies for the failure of drug manufacturers […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated government regulatory authorities in Canada, Japan, and the United Kingdom as WHO-Listed Authorities (WLAs), a status granted to national authorities that meet the highest international regulatory standards for medical products. The recognition widens the pool of WHO-recognized authorities significantly beyond the previously recognized authorities in Europe, the United […] Continue reading ->
Chikwe Ihekweazu, the first director-general of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and currently head of the Health Emergencies Programme for the World Health Organization, believes that greater African leadership in global health organizations would benefit everyone. “These roles require not only technical competence, but also empathy and compassion, which I believe can only develop […] Continue reading ->
NAIROBI – Africa can harness community care, traditional health, exercise and digital tools to treat dementia as its population ages, according to experts on the second day of Nature’s “Future of Dementia in Africa” conference,. The conference, the first of its kind in Africa, was presented in conjunction with the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative and Aga […] Continue reading ->
The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the risks of over-reliance on global supply chains for essential health products. Disruptions led to severe delays and shortages of vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics, with low- and middle-income countries bearing the brunt. Vaccine inequality starkly highlighted Africa’s vulnerability. Yet this crisis unveiled a unique opportunity for the continent: a chance to […] Continue reading ->
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), has announced the creation of a pooled African medicines procurement mechanism at the 37th African Union Summit, which ended yesterday.  The mechanism aims to spearhead “a new era of predictable demand for African manufacturers, empowering them to plan for the long-term and establish a robust […] Continue reading ->
CAIRO, Egypt -Some 70% of countries globally have weak national medicines regulatory systems. But the launch of the African Medicines Agency should help address many of the shortcomings on the African continent, said speakers at the 6th Scientific Conference on Medicines Regulation in Africa (SCoMRA), convened here in mid-December.  The conference, organized by the African Union […] Continue reading ->