Small African island nations sign health agreement

Government ministers from Cabo Verde, Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, Madagascar, Mauritius, Sao Tome and Principe, and Seychelles, nations that form the African Small Island Developing States, have signed an agreement to jointly procure drugs and vaccines in a bid to improve the quality and access to medicines and other health products.

The joint procurement initiative signed at a virtual ceremony on Tuesday is aimed at addressing the high cost of drugs and medical supplies, challenges the states have been experiencing due to their small populations.

The countries now will be in a position to get the timely procurement of supplies at an affordable cost and in sufficient quantities, even as Africa continues to experience the double burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases.

Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO regional-director for Africa, said the signing of the agreement has increased the attractiveness of the countries’ pharmaceutical market.

"By creating a larger stream of demand, we can look forward to better access to quality and competitively -priced medicines. The high cost of medicines is one of the major barriers many countries in our region face in providing affordable health care of a good standard. Pooling our resources is one way of overcoming this challenge," Moeti said.

The plan to establish joint procurement kicked off in 2017 in Seychelles during a meeting of health ministers from the islands.

"We must admit that it has been a long and tedious effort, and I commend the contributions of past and present ministers and their teams for the dedication in creating an enabling environment for this mechanism to be launched," Moeti said.

Despite being a top destination for millions of tourists annually due to their location, as well as their natural and cultural heritage, Small Island Developing States share a number of structural challenges and geophysical constraints that result in disproportionately large economic, social and environmental challenges that hinder their development progress.

Their small domestic markets and a narrow natural resource base result in undiversified economies, limits for achieving economies of scale, and a reduced scope for private sector development, with consequent impacts on economic growth and job creation, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Their economies also are highly open and thus are quickly and strongly affected by global trade and financial volatility and economic downturns.

The islands also face several serious environmental challenges, mostly related to climate change, including sea-level rise and the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem goods and services, according to the UN.