<\/p>\n
The WHO and the European Commission\u2019s Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority held the second workshop on regional pooled procurement mechanisms on June 8 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Regionalised Vaccine Manufacturing Collaborative supported the meeting, which took place alongside the Global Health Security Conference.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Participants included representatives from the Pan American Health Organisation, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, Thailand\u2019s National Vaccine Institute, National University of Singapore, World Bank and Asian Development Bank.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The workshop strengthened cooperation between regional and global organisations working to improve access to medical countermeasures during outbreaks and other health emergencies.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Medical countermeasures include vaccines, diagnostics, treatments and other health products needed to prevent, detect and respond to disease threats.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
WHO Department of Epidemic and Pandemic Management Acting Director Dr Maria Van Kerkhove said pooled procurement should form part of a wider emergency response system. \u201cRegional pooled procurement mechanisms are part of a broader ecosystem that can respond faster, more equitably and dynamically to threats,\u201d Van Kerkhove said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Participants examined how national, regional and global procurement mechanisms interact and how pooled systems can improve equitable access to critical health products.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Discussions also covered donation policies, allocation arrangements, regional manufacturing, stockpiling, research and development.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Financing was identified as a critical enabler. Multilateral development banks highlighted pooled financing, advance funding and demand guarantees as possible tools to support procurement.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
However, participants said financing alone does not guarantee access. Financial instruments must be linked to clear demand signals, sound governance and delivery systems.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
European Commission Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority Deputy Head Laurent Muschel said the interim Medical Countermeasures Network (i-MCM-Net) had supported coordination during the ongoing Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201ci-MCM-Net has been very useful to coordinate and prioritise procurement requests that reach HERA during the ongoing Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak, hence reducing duplication,\u201d Muschel said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Muschel also called for fast and flexible allocation systems guided by scientific evidence and public health needs.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Regionalised Vaccine Manufacturing Collaborative Secretariat Executive Team Member Luigi Bonfatti said cooperation across regions is essential. \u201cSharing progress and pitfalls among regional entities is a key to success,\u201d Bonfatti said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Participants agreed that procurement systems should be strengthened before emergencies occur, with trust, financing and governance arrangements established during preparedness periods.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The workshop also called for closer alignment between global coordination, regional implementation and national decision-making to ensure emergency systems can deliver products quickly and later support sustainable demand.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–WHO\/ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"news-type":[26],"class_list":["post-42085","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the European Commission have advanced efforts to strengthen regional pooled procurement of vaccines, diagnostics and treatments during health emergencies.","published_date":"","news_description":"The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the European Commission have advanced efforts to strengthen regional pooled procurement of vaccines, diagnostics and treatments during health emergencies.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/42085","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/42085\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42087,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/42085\/revisions\/42087"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42085"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=42085"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}