(Ecofin Agency) - The African Medicines Agency established a few years ago, is close to getting operational. Uganda submitted its candidacy to host the agency’s headquarters but Rwanda was finally selected. 

Rwanda has signed an agreement with the African Union to host the headquarters of the African Medicines Agency (AMA). The ceremony took place on Saturday, June 10, 2023, in the presence of Rwandan Health Minister Sabin Nsanzimana, and AU Health Commissioner Minata Samaté Cessouma.

The agreement is signed a few days after Rwandan authorities officially agreed to host the agency’s headquarters. The signing is one of the major steps necessary for this new continental organization to begin its activities.

In 2019, African countries adopted the treaty establishing the AMA, which came into force in 2021. The creation of the AMA is part of the AU's strategy to reduce the African continent's dependence on pharmaceutical products supplied by foreign countries. 

"The African Medicines Agency (AMA) will serve as the continental body that will provide regulatory leadership, to ensure that there are harmonized and strengthened regulatory systems, which govern the regulation of medicines and medical products on the African continent. it will regulate access to safe, effective, good quality and affordable essential medicines and health technologies through coordination of ongoing regulatory systems, strengthening and harmonizing efforts of the AUC, RECs, Regional Health Organizations and Member States," the AU stresses.  

Covid-19 has spurred efforts to change the situation in Africa, where 97% of pharmaceuticals are imported. Several countries have implemented plans to manufacture vaccines and generic medicines, aiming to meet the demands of their domestic markets as well as neighboring sub-regions.

In Rwanda, for example, authorities signed an agreement with German biotech company BioNTech to set up a mobile mRNA vaccines manufacturing plant. For Sabin Nsanzimana, the signing is "a significant milestone.”  “... We are full of optimism as we embark on this new journey to make a lasting impact in improving the healthcare of our people," she said. 

Moutiou Adjibi Nourou