Enabel, the Belgian Development Agency, has partnered with Quamed, a Belgian-based non-profit association, to build the capacity of the Rwanda Food and Drug Authority.

This is part of the effort by the authority to the preparation for the local manufacturing of vaccines and other pharmaceutical products in Rwanda as well as improving access to quality medicine.

This partnership builds on an already existing program between Enabel and Rwanda FDA, funded by the European Union with the aim of establishing a laboratory information management system that is fit for purpose.

During the agreement signing ceremony that was held on 18 March at Rwanda FDA headquarters, Dirk Deprez, resident representative of Enabel said that through the new partnership with Quamed, Enabel will deploy world-class experts to provide hands-on mentorship to the Rwanda FDA team, set up best practice quality assurance procedures and implement a capacity building plan to reach a high level of operational capacity.

In addition, he said that there are other future projects which include an upcoming EU-funded project that will be implemented by Enabel to further enhance the support to Rwanda FDA.

This, he said, will include products assessment and market authorization, post-market surveillance and pharmacovigilance to quality, and to ensure safe and efficacious medical products in the country.

Director General of Rwanda FDA, Emile Bienvenu, welcomed the agreement noting that it is in line with Rwanda FDA’s aim to reach a maturity level 3 as defined by the World Health Organization, which is a requirement to be able to provide regulatory oversight for vaccine manufacturing.

"I believe that the success of this agreement will reach many and help the government of Rwanda in general,” he said, adding that, "in this agreement there will be a long term regulatory expert which is one of the big outcomes of this deal”.

He added that this partnership was brought together in a very short time, responding to a pressing need to reduce dependency from imported pharmaceuticals and global supply chain constraints.

"This will also encourage investors and boost the economy as a new industry starts to develop in Rwanda. As an example, BioNTech is currently preparing to launch mRNA vaccine production in the country, which will pave the way for a rapid growth in this area,” he said.

The new partnership is in line with the Belgium-Rwanda cooperation agreement that mainly focuses on Health, Agriculture, urbanization and public finance management.