Strengthening regulation for medical products in Tanzania: An assessment of regulatory capacity development, 1978-2020.

Autor:	Fimbo AM; Directorate of Medicine Control, Tanzania Medicines and Medical Devices Authority, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania., Sillo HB; Regulation and Safety, Regulation and Prequalification Department, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland., Nkayamba A; Directorate of Medicine Control, Tanzania Medicines and Medical Devices Authority, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania., Kisoma S; Directorate of Medicine Control, Tanzania Medicines and Medical Devices Authority, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania., Mwalwisi YH; Directorate of Medicine Control, Tanzania Medicines and Medical Devices Authority, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania., Idris R; High Impact Africa 2 Department, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Geneva, Switzerland., Asiimwe S; High Impact Africa 2 Department, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Geneva, Switzerland., Githendu P; High Impact Africa 2 Department, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Geneva, Switzerland., Ogbuoji O; Duke Global Health Institute, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America., Morrison L; High Impact Africa 2 Department, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Geneva, Switzerland., Bump JB; Global Health and Population, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America., Kaale E; Department of Medicinal Chemistry and The Pharm R&D Laboratory, School of Pharmacy, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	PLOS global public health [PLOS Glob Public Health] 2024 Oct 16; Vol. 4 (10), pp. e0003241. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Oct 16 (Print Publication: 2024).
DOI:	10.1371/journal.pgph.0003241
Abstrakt:	Improving medicines regulation can lead to better population health, but how this process works in low- and middle-income countries remains underexplored. Tanzania's pharmaceutical sector is often cited as a successful example of a well-functioning regulatory system in a developing country, attributed to the work of the Tanzania Food and Drugs Authority (TFDA), now the Tanzania Medicines and Medical Devices Authority (TMDA). This raises the question: how was this regulatory capacity developed, and what lessons can other countries learn from Tanzania's experience? This paper analyzes changes in Tanzania's pharmaceutical regulation over three periods of significant sectoral reform. A desk review was conducted of Tanzania's policies, laws, regulations, guidelines, procedures, and institutional reports. The study reveals that Tanzania's regulatory capacity improved significantly through targeted reforms that addressed challenges in key regulatory areas. The three key periods examined are: 1) The separation of medicines regulation from food safety (1978-2003), 2) The expansion of regulatory domains and the establishment of a semi-autonomous regulatory agency (2003-2011), and 3) The expanded role of the Pharmacy Council to include premises regulation (2011-2020). The development of a well-functioning regulatory system in Tanzania resulted from advancements in four key areas: 1) The evolution of a legal regulatory framework, 2) Strong stakeholder engagement, 3) Continuous capacity building, and 4) Effective organizational leadership. Tanzania's regulatory system has evolved from being relatively ineffective to leading regional harmonization efforts in East Africa. This progress was not linear, requiring sustained effort, collaboration, and support from key development partners such as the Global Fund, WHO, and UNDP. Future efforts to enhance regulatory effectiveness should focus on creating adaptive systems that respond to changing needs, rather than solely prescriptive functions. Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. (Copyright: © 2024 Fimbo et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)
Databáze:	MEDLINE
Externí odkaz:	Zobrazit plný text záznamu