PMGMAN Lauds Govt Decision on Local Vaccines Production

• Reminds FMOH of its E-MAP proposal

Martins Ifijeh
The Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Group of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (PMGMAN) has lauded the federal government for the recent ratification of agreement between it and May and Baker Plc for the commencement of local production of vaccines in the country.

It said the partnership with May & Baker, the bonafide local manufacturer, and a member of the PMGMAN, will go a long way in addressing disease burdens in the country.

Stating this in a release jointly signed by the Association’s Chairman, Okey Akpa, and the Executive Secretary, Dr. Obi PeterAdigwe, it says; “Local vaccines production for addressing local diseases is the ultimate aim of any nation with robust strategies to address healthcare challenges. This partnership with May and Baker is the first step in revitalizing vaccines production in Nigeria, and this represents the most sustainable and effective approach to ensuring the relevant National Security and Self-sufficiency in this critical area.”

It said local medicines manufacturers in the country have long been associated with the production of high quality, affordable medicines, adding that it was on record that Nigeria still has the biggest cluster of World Health Organisation (WHO) certified companies in Africa, as May and Baker is incidentally one of those companies.

“Local Medicines’ Manufacturers are also at the forefront of innovative and contextual solutions to local healthcare issues, such as this commendable partnership that you have initiated. This is evidenced by our robust and comprehensive engagement with a wide range of policymakers and stakeholders,” the statement reads.

The group also reminded the Federal Ministry of Health of its proposal on the Expedited Medicines’ Access Programme (E-MAP) which it presented to the Ministry 7th February 2017 and 21st of February 2017 respectively.

It said the E-MAP was inline with the vision and aspirations of the current administration which aims at providing affordable, high quality medicines to the Nigerian populace in a sustainable and cost efficient manner. “The programme design involves combining innovative manufacturing practices with contextual logistics and supply chain management. This will in turn achieve effective, cost efficient and timely provision of high quality medicines across the country.

“Honourable Minister, as you are aware, the Acting President’s Executive Order on Local Content in Public Procurement mandates all MDAs to grant procurement preference to local manufacturers, and expressly specifies locally manufactured medicines in Section 4F. In light of this, we wish to appeal to you to begin the relevant processes for the implementation of E-MAP,” the statement reads.