This past week, over 60 faculty, students and supporting organisations met virtually for what is becoming a cherished tradition at Pharmacometrics Africa: The graduation of our latest cohort in the Clinical Assessors within African Regulatory Agencies short course. This course is focused on addressing gaps in regulatory sciences through hands-on training from experts across academia and industry.
The ceremony celebrated not only the students who graduate this 13-week course but the faculty members whose expertise brought the learning to life. It also highlights a much broader impact:
“This third iteration of the training program has allowed for candid dialogue among Regulators, pharmaceutical industry players and academics in order to ultimately benefit patients with better therapeutic interventions, access and quality of care across the continent”
Colin Pillai, CEO of Pharmacometrics Africa.
Throughout the graduation, students, faculty and stakeholders shared their perspectives virtually via chat and video. Participants shared sentiments of encouragement for the future, like faculty member Kennedy Otwombe: “Congratulations to the graduates of the 2024 class. This is an opportunity for you to improve systems in Africa to achieve positive public health outcomes. I wish you well as you proceed to apply the knowledge learnt.”
Others communicated their gratitude: “I would like to say thank you thank you thank you very much to the facilitators and also to my classmates! The 13 weeks were intense, comprehensive and very insightful. Sharing our experiences and learning from one another has been very rewarding and I hope we meet in the future in similar settings and that success will follow us wherever we go. May we be the best regulators and clinical assessors for our countries and for Africa!” – Frieda Shigwedha, 2024 Graduate
The course is accredited by the University of Witwatersrand and includes perspectives from patient organisations like the National Osteoporosis Foundation of South Africa (NOFSA) and private sector players.
Participanting Regulatory Authorities include Botswana’s Medicines Regulatory Authority, Ghana’s Food and Drugs Authority, Kenya’s Pharmacy and Poisons Board, Ethiopia’s Food and Drug Authority, SAHPRA, Rwanda’s Food and Drug Authority, Tanzania’s Medicines and Medical Devices Authority, Namibia’s Medicines Regulatory Council, and the Medicines Control Agency of Zimbabwe.
You can join is in celebrating this event, too – we’ve made the entire recording available here:
For more information about Pharmacometrics Africa and its programs, you can look at what we’ve been up to, find out how to get involved, or get in contact.