Can Africa make the medicines it needs? [Business Africa]
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Loading... - Gloria Mabiala
- 18 Mar 2022
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The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed Africa’s vulnerabilities in ensuring access to vital drugs, vaccines, and health technologies.
The continent imports nearly 95% of all medicines it uses.
Only 3% of global medicine manufacturing is done in Africa. But the continent is emerging from the pandemic wiser. Voices in support of developing more robust local pharmaceutical manufacturing are growing.
Africa has roughly 375 drug makers mostly located in the north of the continent. South Africa and Kenya also boast varying degrees of pharma manufacturing capacity.
There is virtually no medicine manufacturing happening in about 36 sub-Saharan African countries.
Rolled out in 2005, the African Union’s Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Plan for Africa (PMPA) seeks to increase local African pharmaceutical production.
The value of Africa’s pharmaceutical industry will be worth $56 billion by 2030 according to predictions by Goldstein Market Intelligence. But this has not translated into more investment and technology needed to grow African medicines manufacturing.
Lenias Hwenda is the CEO of Medicines for Africa. She joins the show with insights on how to boost local pharmaceutical production and how countries should approach the issue of vaccine-making technology transfer.
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