African continental free trade area: an opportunity to accelerate towards implementation of the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063 through pooled procurement of essential safe and quality drugs and products and local pharmaceutical production for the continent

Abstract

The pharmaceutical project led by the Economic Commission for Africa has the specific aim to bring ideas into action as part of the successful operationalization of the African Continental Free Trade Area. The project is led by the Commission in collaboration with the African Union Commission, the African Union Development Agency-New Partnership for Africa’s Development (AUDA-NEPAD), the World Health Organization (WHO) and other United Nations agencies. This African Continental Free Trade Area-anchored pharmaceutical project is commissioned in selected African countries: The Comoros, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Rwanda, Seychelles and the Sudan, and has anchor support from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD). The project aims to leverage on the African Continental Free Trade Area, which draws together a market of 1.3 billion people and combines gross domestic product (GDP) of $2.5 trillion across the 55 member States of the African Union. The free trade area is expected to make a significant contribution to Africa’s ongoing efforts to bring to reality the aspirations and goals set out in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2063.