By Tony Okafor, Awka
The Anambra State Government through the state Ministry of Health has collaborated with Global Fund in partnership with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to upgrade the state Pharmaceutical Central Store to an international standard.
Anambra State Commissioner for Health, Dr Afam Obidike while signing the memorandum of understanding ( MoU) in Awka, the Anambra State capital, during the official handover of the facility to UNICEF representative and acting Chief of Field office, Enugu, Dr. Olusoji Akiloye, explained that the intervention of Global fund was timely as the state government had before now concluded plans to upgrade the store.
He said,“This is going to be a standard medical warehouse and this will translate to having our drugs in good state because the potency of drugs is always affected by where it is stored or where it is coming from.
“We will see the difference when it is completed within three or four months.
“It will be a pharmaceutical warehouse under the ministry of health, occupying only pharm goods because it is going to have temperature regulation and environmental conduciveness for the commodities that would be inside.”
He emphasized that the upgrade would aid the state to have Drug Management Agency that would directly get drugs from the manufacturers.
He further said,“This will make the drugs cheaper in our public hospitals and the first process to achieving this is warehouse upgrade to accommodate the drugs; and the second is to have it at right temperature and also easy storage and accessibility and more importantly,we are working to have quality drug laboratory and the work is ongoing.
“This implies that any drug that will be sent out of the warehouse must be tested and this will be a means of eliminating sub-standard drugs in our hospitals.”
Obidike also said that the State government would foot 15% of the bill.
According to him, Anambra was one of the 22 states out of 36 that benefited from the grant aimed at improving the infrastructure that would used in the logistics and supply chain management of pharmaceuticals and medical commodities.
He commended UNICEF and Global Fund, the Federal government and other agencies for supporting the upgrade of 22 state warehouses in Nigeria to an international standard, adding,“It is a development that would contribute immensely to the health standard of the nation.”
The UNICEF representative, Dr Akinleye said the idea was to strengthen the country’s health supply chain management system.
He said the project would be completed within four months.
According to him, “The discussions have been ongoing, and that it is a multi-partner venture, at the apex of it is the Global Fund that has provided the resources to strengthen the countries’ supply chain management system and 22 states were selected out of 36 and Anambra is one of them.
He said three states: Anambra, Enugu and Imo in the Enugu UNICEF Field Office would benefit from the upgrading of the warehouse.
He added,“The Global Fund is supporting the upgrade of 22 State warehouses in Nigeria with 3 of these in Anambra, Enugu and Imo in Enugu Field Office. The principal recipient for the grant is National TB and Leprosy Control Programme (NTBLCP).
“Other collaborating government partners include National Product Supply Chain Management Program (NPSCMP), National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC), and Department of Health Planning, Research and Statistics (DHPRS).
“UNICEF coordinates the technical coordination and construction of the warehouses. The bidding process has been concluded and vendors selected, MoUs have been signed with the States.”
