Ghana's ambition to become one of Africa's leading vaccine and pharmaceutical manufacturers will enhance both the health security of the Ghanaian population and the economy.

The European Union (EU) and German Development Cooperation support this sustainable development. In line with this support, the German Development Cooperation presented the Ghanaian Food and Drug Authority (FDA) with four servers to implement the ‘Integrated Regulatory Information Management System’ (IRIMS).

This system digitalises FDA’s regulatory operations, including lot release for vaccine manufacturing, and allows clients to submit and track their applications online.

“With this new management system and additional technical equipment, our Ghanaian partners can continue working towards their objective of turning Ghana into a pharmaceutical producer,' says Wilhelm Hugo, Cluster Coordinator of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), which is implementing the “Support to Strengthen the Institutional and Technical Capacities of the FDA” project on behalf of the German Federal Government and the EU. To regulate vaccine production, the FDA must meet World Health Organisation (WHO) standards. This includes a pharmaceutical-microbiological laboratory and a Clean Room, where contamination from dust, airborne germs, aerosol particles and chemical vapours is prevented.

"By November 2024, the FDA will have a Clean Room that meets specified biosafety standards. This effort underscores our commitment to building the critical infrastructure to regulate locally produced vaccines for the ECOWAS region”, says Dr Delese Darko, CEO of FDA Ghana. Wilhem Hugo adds, ’We are optimistic that our Ghanaian partners will succeed in achieving their objective and thereby improve the health situation throughout West Africa. Additionally, the country will create jobs, generate taxes and dividends and promote sustainable and balanced economic growth."