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Sanofi, May & Baker sign contract for local production of Sanofi’s products

Sanofi, May & Baker sign contract for local production of Sanofi’s products

By Vivian Ihechu
Lagos, Nov. 28, 2019 (NAN) Pharmaceutical giants, Sanofi and May & Baker Nig. Plc. have signed a contract for local production of Sanofi’s products in Nigeria by May & Baker.

This collaboration for local production of the drugs will be in tandem with the localisation policy of the Federal Government and ensure availability of very efficacious  and high quality made-in-Nigeria medicines.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Sanofi is a global healthcare company focused on serving the healthcare needs of the world’s over seven billion people.

The company supports patients and other people with treatments in diabetes, thrombosis and some other infections, as well as with consumer healthcare and human vaccines.

May & Baker is Nigeria’s first pharmaceutical company.

Ms Folake  Odediran, General Manager  Rx,  and Country Chair,  Sanofi Nigeria – Ghana, said at the event in Lagos:“The policy direction set by the Federal Government is to assure national drug security through self-sufficiency in supply of essential medicines.

“ To achieve this, the government has chosen the noble path of building local capability and expertise for sustainable growth.

“At Sanofi, we understand that local sourcing of essential medicines is central to achieving government’s objectives, and we remain committed to this noble aspiration.’’

According to her, the formal signing of a manufacturing agreement with May & Baker is a proof of the commitment to localisation.

“We will continue to contribute our quota toward availability of very efficacious, high-quality made-in-Nigeria medicines.

“ By the virtue of the manufacturing contract, capacity is being developed, and it is a way of empowering lives.

“It will increase availability and more importantly, quality. It is critical that we are producing with our water, under our temperature and environment; that way quality is monitored and assured.

“While the quality remains guaranteed, the cost of the medicines will be reduced because the duties and bottlenecks associated with importation will be reduced,’’ Odediran said.

She said that the choice of May and Baker for the partnership was based on its history of producing high quality medicines.

She called on all stakeholders to collaborate with governments to develop a robust and fully-functional local drug manufacturing ecosystem.

Mr Nnamdi Okafor, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, May & Baker Nigeria Plc,  said: “I am particularly happy at the event of this formal agreement signing ceremony.

“This portends a great opportunity for us and represents a  major achievement in the national quest to increase local content  and capacity in the pharmaceutical sector.

“We are proud to be part of it,’’ he said.

He said that the production will take place at the May & Baker’s Pharmacentre inaugurated in 2011.

According to the managing director, Pharmacentre is the largest pharmaceutical facility in West Africa.

“Today’s contract-signing will bring so many benefits to health and the economy.

“The benefits include capacity building, empowerment, self-reliance.’’

He hailed the efforts of Prof. Christiana Adeyeye, the Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), in quality assurance of medicines.

The Chairman of the occasion,  Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, said that the contract-signing was in line with the mantra of self-sufficiency.

Ohuabunwa, who is the President, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), said at least 50% local manufacturing by 2023 should be targeted.

The Director-General of NAFDAC, Adeyeye, represented by the agency’s Director, Registration and Regulatory Affairs, also commended the agreement between the two pharmaceutical companies. (NAN)

VIV/IGO
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Edited by Ijeoma Popoola

 

Health

WAHO, ECOWAS commit to promoting health through improved integration

From L-R, Prof. Moji Adeyeye, D-G NAFDAC; Dr Stanley Okolo, D-G WAHO; Ms Aissatou Diack, Senior Health Specialist, World Bank, at the 5th Steering Committee Meeting of the West African Medicines Regulatory and Harmonisation Project (WA- MRH) in Lagos on Saturday (NAN)

Integration

By Vivian Ihechu
Lagos, Feb. 2, 2019 (NAN) The West African Health Organisation (WAHO) and ECOWAS member states on Saturday reinforced their commitment to promoting health through improved integration as well as harmonised medicine registration.

Prof. Stanley Okolo, Director-General, WAHO, restated the commitment at the 5th Steering Committee Meeting of the West African Medicines Regulatory Harmonization Initiative in Lagos.

The meeting held from Jan. 31 to Feb. 2.

According to him, the main purpose of the meeting is to appraise the Medicines Regulatory Harmonization (MRH) related activities in the region during the year 2018 and to recommend key actions and activities to be implemented in 2019 with the sole aim of strengthening the performance of the project.

He said: “Integration of national efforts to accelerate the well-being of the people is of great importance to the Authority of Heads of State and Government of ECOWAS.

“It is for this reason that WAHO has been mandated to promote better health through regional integration.

“The quality of health of over 350 million people in the region is paramount and it is a great honour for me to lead this steering committee to strategise and take decisions to ensure access to quality, safe, efficient and affordable medical products for the people.

“I therefore, wish to use this opportunity to re-emphasise here that the region’s highest goal is to have medicines whose quality is not disputed and they are accessible to all, regardless of where the people live.

“We must all support the ongoing process to achieve our goal; as such, the diversity of capacities and efficiency of the National Medicines Regulatory Authorities (NMRAs) are needed to manage the multifaceted approaches to pave the way for success.

“I, together with staff at WAHO affirm our commitment and I believe that all present are equally committed to this vision.”

Okolo said that through the journey of the harmonisation, regulation and integration integration processes, “We may face challenges taking into consideration the limited human and financial resources.”

“These challenges could happen when building of consensus due to our diversities and the level of communication.

“The length of time it takes to get medicines registered, the responsibility to strengthen the local production of medicines and the need to increase the quantum of medicines in the region.

“The fight against the high incidence of substandard and falsified medicines circulating in the region, and the improvement of the capacity building of medicines quality control laboratories are also factors to consider.

“However, this should not deter us from achieving our common goal.

“And that is why we have agreed to jointly register and regulate medicines produced locally and imported into the region with the aim of reducing the time of registration and improving access to medicines as well as ensure better regulatory oversight.”

He commended WAHO’s sister institution, the West African Monetary and Economic Union (UEMOA) for being very instrumental in bringing the harmonised processes of medicines regulation so far into reality and we are very much grateful for the support.

He also expressed his profound gratitude to the Federal Minister of Health of Nigeria for accepting to host the gathering.

According to the WAHO director-general, this strongly indicates the commitment of the Federal Government of Nigeria to public health issues and the interventions of the West African Health Organisation (WAHO) in particular.

The WAHO director-genral also acknowledged the World Bank, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, WHO, UEMOA, African Union Development Agency-NEPAD and Swissmedic.

Other are the European Medicines Agency, United States Pharmacopeia, DFID and UNIDO, for their outstanding contributions and efforts to the establishment and success of the Initiative in the West Africa Region.

He appealed to the meeting to ensure that in all deliberations, the patient should be “first” and all ECOWAS countries to work together to move the medicines regulatory harmonisation initiative to obtain tangible results for positive change in the population and better public health outcomes.

Also, Prof. Moji Adeyeye, Director-General, NAFDAC, said that porosity of the borders aid substandard and fake drugs to find their way into the Nigerian market, hence the need to strengthen collaboration and vigilance.

According to her, NAFDAC is actively working to check the menace.

“NAFDAC is set up in such a way that we have representatives in all the 36 states of he country and FCT.

“Our people are spread around the country to ensure that there is a lot of pharmacovigilance and post marketing surveillance that continuously takes place.

“We seize products once we know they are substandard, falsified or unregistered, as there are many products that are unregistered in Nigeria.

“And it is because of the porosity of the borders.

“But more importantly, our Ports Inspection Directorate, our people are stationed in different borders and also partner with customs to ensure that we don’t allow substandard, falsified medicines to come into our country,” Adeyeye said. (NAN)
VIV/PDE
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(Editing by Peter Ejiofor)

Health

WHO tasks African leaders on medicines, health technology

WHO tasks African leaders on medicines, health technology
NAN-HG-10
Health
By Yashim Katurak
Abuja, Sept. 19, 2017 (NAN) The World Health Organisation (WHO) has urged African leaders to take seriously issues of access to essential medicines and health technologies in order to improve the health system in the continent.
Dr Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO Regional Director for Africa, made the appeal in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday.
She said that the region still carried 25 per cent of the world’s disease burden but consumed less than one per cent of global health expenditure.
Moeti attributed this to insufficient access to quality medicines and high price of drugs, noting that without concerted efforts to tackle the problem, achieving universal health coverage in the region would not be possible.
She said that more work needed to be done in the areas of medicine governance, lack of infrastructure and resources and insufficient technical capacity.
Moeti said currently, one third of Africans did not have regular access to the medicines they needed.
Dr Suzanne Hill, the WHO Director for Essential Medicines and Health Products, said in the statement that many essential medicines were missing from pharmacy shelves especially in rural areas.
According to Hill, there are problems of substandard and falsified medicines entering distribution chains; many households often go without other necessities in order to pay for medicines and health care.
“We need our countries to set up stronger health systems and ensure that all communities are accessing the medicines and health technologies they need, when they need them, at an affordable price and at the right quality standard.
“Basically, we need African governments to take seriously issues of access to essential medicines and health technologies and invest time and resources into these programmes and we need technical and financial support.
“A five year project to increase access to medicines in 15 African countries ends this month with some important achievements but also many challenges ahead.
“This project brought about many improvements such as greater availability to child-friendly medicines particularly for HIV, TB and malaria, faster registration for some vital medicines in countries and progress towards universal health coverage.
“With the project coming to an end, the project partners will meet in Zanzibar from 19 to 21 September to take stock of achievements and devise a way forward,” Moeti said.
She said the five-year project, focused on strengthening pharmaceutical systems in Africa by achieving improved availability and supply of essential medicines in national, regional and community health facilities.
It also sought to achieve lower medicine prices and improved mechanisms for financing and for coverage of essential medicines in social protection schemes.
The WHO regional director said the project also aimed to improve quality and safety of medicines, reduced occurrence of substandard medicines and medicines that pose health risks.
Other objectives of the project included improved medicines selection, prescribing, dispensing and use, improved access to reliable information on countries’ pharmaceutical policies and practices.
Moeti said the project also aimed to achieve enhanced transparency and good governance of the pharmaceutical system in the countries. (NAN)
KRY/MST
Edited by Muhammad Suleiman Tola