The signing has taken place at the GS1 Healthcare conference in Lagos, Nigeria.

Under the coordination of the African Medicines Regulatory Harmonization (AMRH) and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), representatives from national and regional economic communities (RECs) from across Africa have signed a Call to Action for the "Africa Strategy for Pharmaceutical Traceability".

The signatories have declared their support and commitment to undertake actions that will improve the availability of quality medicines, ensure greater visibility of products within the supply chain and enable improved patient care. The adoption of existing global supply chain standards for pharmaceutical traceability will help achieve these goals through stronger regional regulatory harmonisation, as well as global and national interoperability of supply chains and supporting information systems.

“Across Africa medicine regulatory authorities work hard to protect patients and provide access to quality medicines. Today we affirm medicine traceability as a key tool in our collective efforts to support healthy populations and more effective supply chains” said Moji Christianah Adeyeye, Director General of Nigeria’s National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

“The Call to Action states the case – in clear language developed by Africa’s regulatory leaders – for the adoption of global standards for medicine traceability. We are watching with real admiration the commitment made today to medicine quality. This is Africa’s time to shine” added Tom Woods, World Bank’s Chairman of the Global Steering Committee for Quality Assurance.

GS1, the leading global supply chain standards organisation is holding its second African Healthcare conference in Lagos, Nigeria, from 17 to 19 September 2019. This conference is supported by The World Bank, The Global Fund, USAID and the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (IFPMA) and co-hosted by NAFDAC (National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control in Nigeria).

Download the press release with contact details, and see here the full text of the Call to Action.