National plans to combat counterfeit medicines: Towards implementation of a pilot project in Togo

The purpose of the meeting with the Minister of Health of Togo, Prof. Moustafa Mijiyawa, was to present the methodology and the 2022-2024 work programme and budget necessary to support the prefiguration work and the pilot to be conducted in Togo within the framework of the Lomé Initiative against trafficking falsified and substandard medicines (FSM). Indeed, under the political coordination of the Ministry of Health and the technical support of the Brazzaville Foundation, the methodology adopted plans to launch a pilot project in Togo in 2022 in order to verify the feasibility parameters of national plans to fight against falsified and substandard medicines. The work of prefiguring and launching the pilot will be carried out by the prefiguring consultant.

The Republic of Togo, by virtue of its size, geographical location and coordinating role in this initiative, is an ideal candidate. The expected feedback will be used to design more precise national control plans in the other signatory countries of the Initiative. 

The pilot will also make it possible to :

- Identify potential technical and financial partners

- Model the working methodology in order to replicate and adapt it in other Lomé Initiative signatory countries.

- Harmonize the legal framework between the Republic of Togo (Civil Law) and the Republic of Ghana (Common Law)

- Work on a methodological toolbox with various technical and financial partners (WHO, UNODC, laboratories, etc.).

From 11 to 20 April 2022, the Chief Exeuctive of the Brazzaville Foundation Mr. Richard Amalvy and the Consultant Prefigurator of the Lomé Initiative - Pilot Project Mr. Cedric Otse-Mawandza also met with the members of the political coordination ensured by Prof. Mijiyawa as well as all the technical and financial partners likely to bring a support to the project such as WHO, Unicef, UNFPA, World Bank, GiZ, AFD, C.I.PRE.S and USAID.