Ghana Hosts Africa CDC Meeting to Open 1.4 Billion Continental Market to Local Drug Manufacturers
Ghana is hosting a two-day regional meeting in Accra to move the African Pooled Procurement Mechanism (APPM) from pilot to a full continental market.
The move is envisioned to give qualified Ghanaian pharmaceutical and vaccine manufacturers access to some 1.4 billion people.
The meeting, convened by the National Vaccine Institute (NVI) and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) on November 10th and 11th, 2026, brings together manufacturers, regulators, health and procurement officials, and regional bodies.
About 70 participants are expected, including about 40 Member State and regional delegates.
Continental Market
The APPM, established by Africa CDC pursuant to African Union decisions, aggregates demand across Member States to strengthen purchasing power, improve access to affordable, quality-assured products, and create a more predictable market for African manufacturers.
Its first tender, announced in May 2026, covered ten priority reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health (RMNCH) medicines across ten Member States and secured an average of 45% savings below Member State benchmarks, with African manufacturers featuring in five of the ten products.
The mechanism is central to the African Union’s ambition of meeting 60% of the continent’s health products needs from local production by 2040.
MoU
Ghana signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Africa CDC on August 21st, 2026, to participate in the APPM, advancing the Government’s commitment to prioritise locally produced vaccines and pharmaceuticals and to support Ghanaian manufacturers in accessing regional markets.
Participation gives qualified Ghanaian manufacturers a pathway beyond the domestic market of some 33 million people into a continental market of approximately 1.4 billion, and complements Ghana’s work to establish more predictable domestic demand through an Advance Purchase Commitment mechanism and other market-shaping interventions.
Speaking ahead of the meeting, NVI CEO Dr Sodzi Sodzi-Tettey said the meeting presents exciting opportunities for local and continental manufacturers.
“Just a year ago, access to a continental market seemed like a distant dream. Today, not only is Ghana a member of the APPM, but a few products are reaching millions in Africa. With this meeting, we expand the opportunity to all pharmaceutical and vaccine manufacturers in Ghana and West Africa. It is an opportunity to scale for impact,” he said.
Purpose
According to the NVI, the meeting will focus on the practical arrangements needed to operationalise the APPM.
Discussions will include country enrolment, the APPM Supply Catalogue, technical specifications, demand aggregation and forecasting, quality assurance and regulatory requirements, tendering status, and financing and implementation timelines.
Participants will seek to build a common understanding of the APPM operational model and clarify the roles and responsibilities of Africa CDC, participating Member States, procuring entities and manufacturers.
They will also agree on practical arrangements for demand aggregation and prioritisation of health products for pooled procurement, including requirements for the APPM Supply Catalogue and demand forecasting.
The meeting will further clarify supplier participation, quality assurance and regulatory requirements, and identify actions needed to strengthen the readiness of African manufacturers to access pooled procurement opportunities.
It will also agree on procurement, financing and implementation arrangements, including a time-bound roadmap for operationalising the APPM in Ghana and supporting regional market access for priority health products.
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