Egypt’s UPA reveals details of cooperation plans with Africa

CAIRO – 11 June 2022: The Egyptian Authority for Unified Procurement “UPA” revealed the details of cooperation plans with Africa in the coming period.

This comes in response to the recommendations of the first African Medical Conference (Africa Health ExCon) that was held during the last period, noting that there is continuous support and cooperation with the African brothers.

Dr. Adel El-Adawy, Chairman of the Scientific Committee of the First African Medical Conference, which was held from 5-7 June, confirmed that President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s initiative to provide 30 million doses of Corona vaccination to African countries will be implemented through the African Union.

"We aim to meet the challenges facing African countries in the health sector, which has not yet recovered from the consequences of the Corona pandemic and some tropical and infectious diseases," El-Adawy said.

He further noted that there is a plan to consolidate cooperation between the countries of the continent to provide basic health care services, medicines and vaccines to the peoples of the world.

An initiative called “Africa Health .. from the supply of treatment to recovery was launched, aiming to expand the African human and material capabilities to produce vaccines, tools, equipment and treatment supplies by the year 2030. The initiative also strengthens the negotiating position of African countries in importing medicine and treatment supplies that are not produced in continent, ensuring strategically efficient procurement processes.

The initiative includes the following topics, according to El-Adawy:

-      Efforts will be made to eliminate the hepatitis B virus, which afflicts 82 million people in Africa, as well as the Hepatitis C virus that affects nearly 10 million people, in cooperation with international bodies and the African Union. This will happen by immediately starting to apply vaccination against viruses at birth, and providing effective treatment for cases suffering from cirrhosis of the liver as a result of infection with the virus, and this will be provided at an appropriate price.

-      The initiative also aims to benefit from the Egyptian experience in combating Hepatitis C, through transferring expertise and trained cadres, as well as diagnostic tools and effective treatment produced in Egypt.

-      There will also be cooperation in the field of maternal and child health through the exchange of experiences between the countries of the north, south and west of the continent, atop of which are: Nigeria, Egypt, South Africa and Morocco, as well as exchanging the experiences of pediatricians and supporting the launch of scientific research in this field, especially to combat obesity and ensure the right to education for girls.

-      A set of training courses will be implemented for workers in African health sectors on topics related to the design and implementation of health policies, in cooperation with the World Health Organization during the next two years.

-      A booklet will be issued in several languages ​​in the year 2024, with the most important educational materials that have been taught in this regard, to expand the benefit to all people of the continent.

-      A call to formulate a continental strategy will be launched, in order to apply artificial intelligence in the medical field across the African continent. 

-      A unified electronic database will be also launched linking all African countries to facilitate continental cooperation in the health field at the level of experts and companies, and to establish partnerships, aiming at localizing Pharmaceutical industries in the continent.

-      There are plans to operate Egyptian medical convoys in Africa, and to be present in geographically remote areas, in order to carry out medium and large surgeries, treat new diseased cases, and encourage the concerned research authorities to study the proposal for the registration and pricing of medicines in a unified framework within the framework of the work mechanisms of the Organization of the African Union.

-      Cooperation will also touch the field of reforming and renewing medical education systems, developing medical curricula and examination systems, as well as unifying evaluation methods for doctors' licenses and their mutual recognition among African countries.