Zambia Hosts First Zambia-EU Pharmaceutical Forum

Hakainde Hichilema launched yesterday the first ever Zambia-EU Pharmaceutical Forum, the theme of which was “Strengthening Healthcare Through Local Pharmaceutical Manufacturing”. The Conference will be a three-day, 1-3 March exploration of Zambian pharmaceutical current and potential capability.

Held at the KK Wing of the Mulungushi International Conference Centre, the forum is another indicator of the New Dawn government’s proactive problem-solving approach as it seeks long-term solutions to recent pharmaceutical challenges.

Present at the conference was a wide range of Zambian nationwide and local pharmaceutical firms, who collectively indicated an eagerness to move from over-reliance on imported products and materials to a partnership initiative.

Exchange deals with the European Union are likely to lessen strain on Zambian supply chains, boost production of pharmaceuticals within Zambia, and improve the value of Zambian-made pharmaceuticals for the export market.

Also raised and approved at the forum was the option of collaborative partnerships with foreign pharmaceutical companies, who have offered local firms the opportunity to build capacity and experience with the view to becoming productionally self-sufficient.

The New Dawn government also laid out its intention to introduce ‘positive discrimination’ policies, promoting local entrepreneurship and initiatives to foster local economic growth and foundations for further and more ambitious pharmaceutical production.

The Anti-Corruption Commission will also continue to identify and punish corruption, which historically has affected the supply chain.

This news comes after Minister of Health Sylvia Masebo announced on Feb 28 that the government had identified the pharmaceutical industry “as a priority part of its post-pandemic approach to increasing health security and its endeavours to promote private sector driven socio-economic development.” The Zambia-EU Pharmaceutical Forum, Ms. Masebo said, is the result of the EU-Zambia Economic Forum held in May 2022, and was arranged by the Zambia Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Initiative which was itself launched in October 2022.

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