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The United States (U.S.) Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) has launched the Center for Pharmaceutical Advancement and Training (CePAT) in Accra as part of efforts to increase the number of experts and available tools to combat falsified, substandard and counterfeit medicines in countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. A press statement from the Public Affairs section of the U.S. Embassy in Accra and copied to the Ghana News Agency, said the center was being launched as a Commitment to Action through the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI). It said the opening of the new Center was the beginning of a series of global health initiatives to equip national and local regulatory authorities and officers, quality assurance and quality control professionals, manufacturers, and others in the pharmaceutical industry with knowledge and skills to promote access to good quality medicines. �CePAT is a natural extension of USP�s core mission of establishing public standards for the quality of medicines, foods, and dietary supplements. As USP has become increasingly active throughout the world, the need to support efforts to provide good quality medicines to everyone who requires them has become more important. �CePAT is a positive step in that direction, and has been realized in part through our strong working relationships with the Ghanaian and other Sub-Saharan African medicines regulatory authorities�, the statement quoted Roger L. Williams (M.D.), Chief Executive Officer of USP. It noted that Ghanaians and many in Sub-Saharan Africa currently faced a serious problem with regard to accessing quality medicines. Citing a 2013 report on the quality of uterotonics (oxytocin and ergometrine) in Ghana, the statement said over 90 per cent of the samples tested by USAID-USP Promoting the Quality of Medicines Program (PQM) were found to have failed either the test for the active ingredient or sterility, and only three of the 26 products tested were officially registered with the Ghana Food and Drug Authority (FDA). It further indicated that another study in 2010 on the quality of anti-malarials in African countries, collaboratively conducted between the World Health Organization (WHO) and PQM, revealed that 44 per cent of the samples collected in Senegal failed to meet quality standards. In Madagascar and Uganda, 30 per cent and 26 per cent of the samples, respectively, failed. �These reports, and others, underscore the seriousness of the issue and the need for trained professionals to improve access to quality medicines, which CePAT hopes to help ensure�, the statement said. Gene A. Cretz, U.S. Ambassador to Ghana remarked, �Improvements in this area are critical, and I am proud that CePAT is playing a role in tackling this problem, and that the U.S. President�s Malaria Initiative and USAID activities laid the groundwork for establishing USP in Ghana.� Patrick H. Lukulay (Ph.D.), Vice President of USP�s Global Health Impact Programs (GHIP), who also oversees CePAT operations also pointed out that: �Serious public health issues related to poor quality medicines have been linked to lack of trained human resources in countries with limited resources. �With the center, we want to bring the opportunity to improve local quality assurance systems by training national regulatory agencies and quality control professionals so they can fight the problem of fake and substandard medicines in a sustainable way,� he added. The statement explained that CePAT�s first course offerings are on Medicines Dossier Evaluation, Quality Control (including hands-on laboratory training) and Good Manufacturing Practices for Pharmaceuticals. Applications are subject to a pre-evaluation to ensure that the appropriate candidates are chosen, based on their potential role in providing access to good quality medicines in the Sub-Saharan African region.