Deutschland - Dienstleistungen des Gesundheits- und Sozialwesens - Supporting Ghanaian pharmaceutical manufacturers

Access to affordable and high-quality vaccines and medicines is fundamental to ensuring the well-being of any population. Today, Ghana imports 70 % of the pharmaceutical products and 100 % of the vaccines it needs. As in many African nations, this reliance on imported pharmaceutical products is straining both the economy and public health security. The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the vulnerabilities inherent in this dependency, highlighting the importance for self-reliance and resilient healthcare systems. Ghana is therefore embarking on an ambitious initiative aimed at enhancing local manufacturing capacities for vaccines and medicines to foster availability and accessibility. The pharmaceutical sector has also been identified as an anchor industry for Ghana's industrial transformation and the creation of decent jobs. On the one hand, Ghana"s pharmaceutical industry faces challenges such as cost-intensive procurement of primary products from abroad, a lack of product diversification, high financing costs and a lack of the necessary technologies, technical capacities and skilled workforce. On the other hand, market opportunities are growing and the industry has a strong basis to build on, such as a network of existing local manufacturers, international collaborations for technology transfer, supply, skills development and research, as well as an enabling policy framework. Ghana thus has the potential to become one of the regional vaccine and pharmaceutical manufacturing hubs in Africa. Building on this momentum, the European Union (EU) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) are co-financing the programme "Strengthening the Ghanaian Pharmaceutical Sector with a Focus on Vaccine Production" (PharmaVax Ghana) as part of the Team Europe Initiative (TEI) Manufacturing and Access to Vaccines, Medicines and Health Technologies (MAV+). GIZ is the implementing agency for this EUR33 million technical cooperation programme running from July 2024 to March 2028. The programme"s specific objective is to ensure that the public and private ecosystems of Ghana"s pharmaceutical industry contribute to more competitive local manufacturing of pharmaceutical products. Within this ecosystem approach, the programme works on strengthening key enablers for efficient and sustainable vaccine and pharmaceutical manufacturing in Ghana. In particular, it focuses on four key result areas (components): (1) Governance & Regulation: Enhancing the capacities of Ghanaian public actors to effectively govern, coordinate and regulate pharmaceutical and vaccine manufacturing (2) Skills Development: Institutionalising practice-oriented, gender-responsive skills development measures needed to grow pharmaceutical and vaccine production capacities in Ghana (3) Research & Development (R&D): Fostering Ghanaian research institutions" applied R&D capacities and industry partnerships to stimulate local innovation in pharmaceutical and vaccine development and manufacturing (4) Private Sector Development: Enabling Ghanaian pharmaceutical and vaccine manufacturers to comply with good practices, become attractive for international partnerships and grow their business Ghana"s Ministry of Finance (MoF) is the programme"s political partner, with the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MoTI) and the National Vaccine Institute (NVI) being the key Ghanaian implementing partners. The programme also works in collaboration with the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), line ministries for health, education and sciences, Ghana"s pharmaceutical manufacturers, private sector associations as well as relevant research and training institutions and it will create linkages with other African, European and international initiatives, research institutions and companies. GIZ intends to contract a service provider for the implementation of four work packages within component 4 of the PharmaVax Ghana the programme. This assignment contributes to the overall objective of the PharmaVax Ghana programme to ensure that the public and private ecosystems of Ghana"s pharmaceutical industry contribute to more competitive local manufacturing of pharmaceutical products. Specifically, the assignment supports the achievement of the specific objectives and indicators related to component 4 on private sector development. Component 4 aims to strengthen local pharmaceutical and vaccine manufacturers" capacities with regard to international good practices in the area of manufacturing and market access, so they become more competitive, can expand their own market activities and become more attractive for cooperation with international players. The hypothesis is that compliance with international manufacturing standards and/or international business-to-business cooperation for technology transfer will increase the quality of the products, resulting in new sales markets and higher sales for Ghanaian manufacturers. Higher productivity and quality standards of local pharmaceutical manufacturers also make Ghana more attractive as a location for international investors. Key partners are the Ghanaian pharmaceutical manufacturers and their associations, the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of Ghana (PMAG) and the Small-Scale Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of Ghana (SSPMAG). The contractor is responsible for the following four work packages and for achieving the corresponding milestones. These work packages fall under component 4 but there are strong links to the other components, as well as with further activities under component 4 implemented by GIZ staff or other contractors or financing recipients, such as activities to promote trade capacities of manufacturers, investment promotion activities or support to business associations. Across all work packages, the contractor must ensure that the beneficiaries, which are local for-profit companies, are selected through open and transparent processes. Work package A: Business development, new markets and local value chains Technical support to Ghanaian pharmaceutical manufacturers on business development is crucial to compete with often cheaper imported products. An unpredictable and fragmented pharmaceutical market on the African continent is another challenge to be addressed. To enable manufacturers to mature and diversify their business, enter new markets and reach economies of scale, holistic support along the value chain and strong coordination is needed. Business Development Services (BDS) provided by the contractor must as far as possible be provided through local resources in order to build rather than crowd-out local capacities and also be coordinated with local business associations to ensure coherence. Key areas include: 1. General concept for BDS 2. Financing and controlling 3. Marketing 4. Product development 5. Green production and transformation 6. Human Resources (HR) and diversity management 7. Digitalisation of business processes ("digital transformation") 8. Market analysis and market entry studies 9. Integration of local support industries into the pharmaceutical value chain Work package B: Partnerships, technology transfers, licensing and intellectual property management The contractor shall prepare Ghanaian manufacturers for international cooperation (including technology transfers) and ultimately facilitate the partnerships for pharmaceutical manufacturing. A particular focus should be on the vaccine manufacturers. Work package C: International standards and practices While Ghanaian manufacturers produce under local Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) conditions and are regulated by the Ghanaian Food and Drugs Authority, there is still a need to improve and comply with international standards and practices (EU GMP, US current GMP, etc.). A proof of compliance with international standards and practices (Pharmaceutical Inspection Co-operation Scheme (PIC/S), World Health Organization prequalification) will enable local manufacturers to participate in international tenders (Global Fund, UNICEF, etc.), enter new and strictly regulated markets (EU, Asia) and increase their competitiveness. The contractor shall prepare Ghanaian manufacturers for compliance with international standards and practices and ultimately facilitate the assessment of compliance. A particular focus should be on the vaccine manufacturers. Work package D: Call for Proposals for small-scale manufacturers Together with SSPMAG, a competition will be launched to provide technical, material and financial support for innovative proposals from micro and small producers. The support should specifically address quality upgrade and product diversification and innovation of SSPMAG member companies. The proposals developed for the call for proposals could aim at developing of new formulations or product lines including technical support and training, procurement of required small-scale equipment, procurement of required reagents and raw materials, etc. The proposal could also target improved marketing of already approved products (awareness raising campaigns, etc). Another aspect of the proposal could be advice on upgrade and renovation of manufacturing facilities to meet Ghana Food and Drugs Authority requirements and improve quality-assured production. Further details are to be confirmed during the development of the call for proposals. Support to 10 projects with a duration of up to 24 months each is expected (number and duration to be confirmed during concept development). Incentives should be provided to ensure that women benefit equally as entrepreneurs.