Libya is considering joining the <a href="https://absafricatv.com/city-of-london-leaked-report-shows-links-to-african-slave-trade/” title=”City of London 'leaked' report shows links to African slave trade”>African Pooled Purchasing Mechanism (APPM) for health products.
This came during the Tripoli Ministry of Health’s participation last week in the Africa Africa Centre for Disease Control (CDC) consultations on the APPM in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Representatives from 14 African Union member states attended the APPM consultations. Procurement agencies, regulatory bodies, and ministries of health were also present.
The Ministry of Health reported that the consultations centred on the practical aspects of activating the mechanism, monitoring progress, and identifying the next steps toward transforming the continental initiative into an operational programme capable of achieving tangible results in the provision of health products.
The meeting also addressed ways to enhance African countries‘ access to quality-assured health products through order consolidation, increasing countries’ negotiating power, reducing procurement costs, encouraging purchases from African manufacturers, and supporting health manufacturing capabilities within the continent.
The APPM comes within the framework of the African trend towards strengthening integration in the procurement of medicines, medical supplies, and health products, and supporting health security and supply chains, thereby enhancing the ability of African countries to meet their health needs more sustainably and efficiently.
The Health Ministry said that its participation in the Addis Ababa consultations is of particular importance in understanding the mechanisms for benefiting from this continental initiative, exploring opportunities to consolidate national needs, streamline and reduce procurement costs, and ensure the continued availability of priority health products.
It also aims to identify the procedures and requirements necessary for Libya to join the APPM.
The Ministry added that Libya’s participation in these consultations reflects its commitment to expanding the scope of African health cooperation and benefiting from continental initiatives that support the medical supply system and enhance health security in Libya.
