The Republic of Togo and the Republic of Mauritius became the twenty-third (23^rd) and the twenty-fourth (24^th) African Union (AU) member states to sign the Treaty for the establishment of the African Medicines Agency (AMA) on 20 and 21 September 2021, at the AU Commission in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Mr. Mohamed Salem Boukhari Khalil from the Office of the Legal Counsel of the African Union Commission received the two delegations from the Republics of Togo and Mauritius, Mr. Atche Tinta, the second counsel at the Embassy of Togo in Addis Ababa and the Ambassador of Mauritius to Ethiopia and to the African Union H.E. Mr. Dharmraj Busgeeth, who made a commitment to speedily move to the next stage of ratification of the AMA Treaty.

The signing demonstrates the fulfilment of the desire by Heads of States and Government (HoSG) to use continental institutional, scientific and regulatory resources to improve access to safe, efficacious and quality medicines.

The African Medicines Agency (AMA) will among other functions provide technical assistance and resources, where possible, on regulatory matters to State Parties that seek assistance, and pool expertise and capacities to strengthen networking for optimal use of the limited resources available. The Agency will also coordinate access to and network the services available in quality control laboratory services within national and regional regulatory authorities.

To date, seventeen (17) member states have ratified the AMA Treaty and twelve (12) of these have deposited the instruments of ratification to the Commission. Twenty four (24) member states have signed the Treaty. The AMA Treaty will enter into Force 30 days after the deposit of the 15th instrument of ratification at the Commission. Pending the deposit of the 15th instrument of ratification, the Commission has invited member states to submit proposals for the hosting of the African Medicines Agency Headquarters. The Commission has also further extended the deadline for submission of interest to host the AMA up to 15th October 2021 as per the ruling of the Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC) on 6th September 2021. The Commission expects to have the establishment and operationalization of the AMA in full progress in 2022.

The African Union Commission encourages all its member states to sign and ratify the Treaty for the establishment of AMA in the interest of public health, safety and security. The Treaty is available for signature at the Headquarters of the Commission in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

About the African Medicines Agency (AMA)

The AMA Treaty was adopted by Heads of States and Government during their 32^nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly on 11 February 2019 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The African Medicines Agency aspires to provide support for the improvement of weak regulatory systems. AMA shall build on the efforts of the African Medicines Regulatory Harmonization (AMRH) initiative (2009), which is led by the Africa Union Development Agency - the New Partnership for Africa's Development (AUDA-NEPAD). The AMRH inititiave provides guidance to AU recognized Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and Regional Health Organizations (RHOs), to facilitate harmonization of regulatory requirements and practice among the national medicines authorities (NMRAs) of the AU Member States. AMA will be the second specialized health agency of the African Union after the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC)

Further information should be directed to:

1. Mohamed Salem Boukhari Khalil

Office of the Legal Counsel of the African Union Commission

Tel:  +251911405697                      Email: KhalilM@africa-union.org

2. Dr. Margaret Agama-Anyetei, Ag. Director of Health and Humanitarian Affairs Directorate; Department of Health, Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development, AU Commission; Tel: +251115182211; E-mail: Agama-AnyeteiM@africa-union.org

For further media inquiries, please contact:

1. Ms. Dorothy Njagi | Strategic Communication Expert, Division for Health, Nutrition and Population | Department of Health, Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development, African Union Commission | Mobile: +251940559950 | E-mail: njagid@africa-union.org
2. Mr. Gamal Eldin Ahmed A. Karrar | Senior Communication Officer | Information and Communications Directorate (ICD) | E-mail: GamalK@africa-union.org

Directorate of Information and Communication | African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org I Website: www.au.int I Addis Ababa | Ethiopia Follow Us: Facebook | Twitter | YouTube