Determined to reduce reliance on imported medicines and better prepare for future pandemics, East Africa is strengthening regional collaboration to boost health security and accelerate local production of vaccines and other critical health products.

Regional health leaders, policymakers, academics, and industry representatives convened in Kigali on February 25–26 for the Conference of Partners of the Regional Capability and Capacity Network (RCCN) East Africa.

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The meeting, the first since the appointment of the RCCN East Africa Secretariat, marked a new phase of coordinated efforts to build technical expertise, harmonise training standards, and align policies among member countries.

The renewed push follows lessons from the Covid-19 pandemic, which exposed major vulnerabilities in Africa’s health systems, particularly the continent’s dependence on external suppliers for vaccines and other medical products.

Organisers say the initiative aims to accelerate production of vaccines, diagnostics, and therapeutics while fostering a more resilient and self-reliant regional health manufacturing ecosystem.

The RCCN East Africa Secretariat is hosted through Syllabi/ABI at the Rwanda’s Ministry of Education in collaboration with the East African Community Regional Centre of Excellence for Vaccines, Immunisation and Health Supply Chain Management at the University of Rwanda.

In her remarks, the State Minister for Education, Claudette Irere, said the Covid-19 pandemic revealed critical gaps in Africa’s preparedness, including limited technical knowledge and insufficient local manufacturing capacity.

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She stressed the need to strengthen pharmaceutical manufacturing skills and expand specialised training to better equip countries to respond to future epidemics. In response, stakeholders have launched new academic programmes while reinforcing existing expertise in pharmaceutical production and related scientific fields.

"Related efforts and engagements have also focused on promoting collaboration among institutions and regional universities to assess how collective capacity to manufacture medicines can be expanded and coordinated,” she stated.

The strategy reflects a broader recognition that Africa must continue building its capabilities in research, manufacturing, regulation, and policy coordination.

"Building resilient frameworks is therefore seen not only as a reaction to past global health crises but also as a proactive investment in future resilience, competitiveness, and health security,” she observed.

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Irere added that medical education and skills development are central to this transformation.

"Advancing vaccine manufacturing, biopharmaceutical innovation, and overall health security requires academic and training programmes to evolve, aligning curricula and research with the needs of industry, regulators, and public health.”

Boosting pharmaceutical production in Africa to cut high reliance on imports

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Rwanda, Didas Muganga Kayihura reaffirmed the university’s role in strengthening pharmaceutical production in Africa.

"As the University of Rwanda, we see ourselves not only as an academic institution, but as a regional partner in development. Through our EAC Centre of Excellence for Vaccines, Immunization and Health Supply Chain Management, the RCCN Eastern [Africa] regional network, will have a platform for capacity building, research, and training to support vaccine production and manufacturing in East Africa.”

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Kayihura noted that the Eastern Africa regional network brings together member countries in coordinated efforts to build capacity, supported by development partners committed to this cause.

The RCCN East Africa initiative is part of a broader continental strategy led by the Africa CDC strengthen workforce capability and expand local manufacturing of health products.

To address gaps exposed by the pandemic — including reliance on imports and limited regulatory readiness — four regional RCCN Secretariats covering North, West, Southern, and East Africa have been established to coordinate capacity-building and workforce development.

The East Africa Secretariat, hosted in Rwanda, will link member countries including Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda, promoting collaboration among governments, universities, regulators, and private sector actors.

Officials say the Kigali workshop signals the start of sustained regional coordination to build a strong biomanufacturing workforce.