Ghana minister urges researchers to turn discoveries into medicines, vaccines

Ghana's Health Minister, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, is pushing for a significant shift from importing medicines and vaccines to establishing a robust local pharmaceutical manufacturing system. He stressed that this transition is not merely an industrial goal but a critical component of national health security.

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When there is an outbreak, health sovereignty is not when we have to wait at the back of the queue for vaccination.

Speaking at the Research Meets Manufacturing award ceremony in Accra, where eight research projects received grants through the PharmaVax Ghana program, Akandoh highlighted the vulnerabilities exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. He noted that relying on other countries for essential health products, especially vaccines, carries significant risks, as demonstrated when some nations prioritized their own populations during vaccine distribution.

Akandoh clarified that achieving health sovereignty does not mean severing ties with international partners. Instead, Ghana seeks "partnership with dignity and respect," aiming for collaborations that provide technology, expertise, financing, and knowledge while simultaneously building local capacity. The government is committed to fostering the pharmaceutical innovation ecosystem through research funding, technology transfer, regulatory reforms, and creating a predictable market for locally produced goods.

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We need partnership, but partnership with dignity and respect.

The minister emphasized that the success of the PharmaVax initiative will be measured by the progression of research projects into commercially viable products, urging researchers to ensure their work translates into tangible benefits that improve lives. Increased local pharmaceutical production is also expected to bolster the Ghanaian economy by reducing foreign exchange expenditure on imports, retaining value domestically, creating jobs, and lessening vulnerability to global supply chain disruptions.

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Your research must not end on laboratory shelves or in academic journals. It must travel the full distance towards products that improve lives.