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Medical experts in Africa have teamed up in a bid to eradicate poverty and diseases endemic in the region and promote efforts and policies to boost local production of pharmaceuticals.

Africa Health and Economic Transformation Initiative (AHETI) which was commissioned in Nairobi yesterday targets to eradicate diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis, HIV and AIDS, Hepatitis B and diarrhoea among others ravaging the region.

The aim of the initiative dabbed the “Leading Impactful Health Transformation in Africa Programme” is also aimed to develop competent leadership, both political and technocratic, to transform the health sector in Africa.

It will also see the establishment of the Ubuntu Health Impact Fund for Africa that will be launched at the Africa Afya Conference slated for January 11 and 12, 2023 in Kigali, Rwanda.

Incentivise pharmaceutical

Executive Director and Chair of the AHETI Board Fr Charles  says the purpose of the fund is to incentivise  pharmaceutical innovation and production in and for Africa through the provision of  sustainable rewards for innovators.

 “The purpose of the initiative is also to develop diagnostics and pursue drug candidates that have significant prophylactic or therapeutic potential but are not commercially attractive under the current regime. It is with great happiness and genuine excitement that we unveil the Africa Health and Economic Transformation Initiative (AHETI) and the upcoming Africa Afya conference in Kigali Rwanda,” said Fr Chilufya.

“At the conference, we will present alternative models to incentivize pharmaceutical production in Africa and give a comprehensive picture of key issues in the promotion of local pharmaceutical production in Africa,” he added.

The aim of AHETI is also to collaborate with pharmaceutical innovators to set up multifunctional biomedical research facilities in Africa to advance molecular diagnosis, as the first step to precision medicine becoming a reality in Africa.

“We will also work with a growing network of very highly qualified African pharmaceutical experts with vast experience, both in Africa and in the diaspora, on concrete efforts that are revolutionizing pharmaceutical work in Africa through precision medicine informed by biomedical data drawn from Africa and therefore providing health solutions suited for the continent,” explained Fr Chilufya.

Exposure to vulnerability

This initiative is a culmination of the recommendations of the Africa Task Force of the Vatican Covid-19 Commission and comes in the wake of the exposure of the vulnerability of Africa’s Healthcare systems as the pandemic hit and scramble for vaccines ensued.

The Kigali conference will bring together a wide range of stakeholders whose collaboration is essential for promoting equitable access to affordable, effective and quality medicines through increased local pharmaceutical production.

AHETI’s efforts are mainly driven by an ethical imperative and social justice: people should not be denied access to life-saving or health-promoting interventions for unfair reasons, including economic or social causes.

AHETI is an initiative of the Justice and Ecology Network Africa (JENA) in collaboration with its partners, the Yale University Global Justice Program and the AU Development Agency – NEPAD.