Four public institutions in Ghana namely the University of Ghana, University of Cape Coast, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital have received retooling in Lab equipment from a donation made by the United States Pharmacopoeia (USP) Ghana.

The direct beneficiary departments of these institutions are the School of Pharmacy of the University of Ghana; Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology; School of Physical Sciences of the University of Cape Coast, and the Department of Pharmacy of Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.

Each of these institutions received a different set of laboratory equipment such as an Ultraviolet-visible Spectrophotometer, Vacuum Oven, Dissolution Machine, Water Bath, High-Performance Liquid Chromatograph, Centrifuges, and Laboratory Benches among others.

The donation is in furtherance of the subsidiary of United States Pharmacopoeia's commitment to contribute logistics and technical support for the training of professionals in the health and pharmaceutical sciences and to help improve health outcomes in general.

Representatives of the various institutions received this equipment on behalf of their respective institutions and thanked USP for the gesture, extolling the organisation’s close collaboration and commitment to the health sector in Ghana.

Lawrence Asamoah Adutwum, Head of the Department, of Pharmaceutical Chemistry said the University of Ghana is grateful for the long-standing collaboration between the School of Pharmacy and USP which has contributed to enhancing teaching and learning.

“We at the School of Pharmacy at UG have been collaborating with USP for close to a decade now. We have taken advantage of your well-equipped lab in our practical sessions.

"We are actually very happy to be receiving this equipment at this time even though it is not the first time. We are preparing to mount a new program and we strongly believe that this equipment will contribute greatly to the training of students for the next academic year and for years to come”

Director of USP Ghana, Kwasi Poku Boateng said the work of USP continues to contribute to strengthening regulatory systems on the continent and the donation forms part of the organisation’s commitment to enhance the capacities of these institutions to train the next generation of health professionals.

“Today we have decided to hand over this equipment to you who we believe can put it to good use for both training and technical processes.

"We have a shared vision of a stronger and better pharmaceutical sector for the continent, and we continue to provide technical support and collaborate with relevant stakeholders both in Ghana and on the continent to achieve this objective.

"For example, we support the Food and Drugs Authority in their work, we supported the Greater Accra and Eastern Regional Hospitals Laboratory to get ISO accreditation.

"On the continent out of the about 13 laboratories that have international recognition, about 50% of them have received support from USP.

"Our mandate also enjoins us to help contribute to the training of modern-day health scientists and hence the donation we are making today,” Mr Boateng said.

For the past 200 years since its establishment, USP through its global public health programs has been strengthening health systems by providing technical assistance that improves access to quality, assured medicines and protects patients from substandard and falsified medical products as well as support for workforce development.

The organisation’s relationship with pharmaceutical training in Ghana formally dates back to about a decade ago when it signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the University of Ghana Pharmacy School to cooperate in areas of common interest.

This recent donation to these institutions signals the organisation's resolve to impact more broadly on pharmaceutical training in Ghana.