Installation of drug factory in Mozambique is concluded

On Thursday (September, 30th), the project for the installation of the Pharmaceutical Plant in Maputo, Mozambique capital, was concluded. The announcement was made in a joint statement by the Brazil and Mozambique governments and is the result of the technology transfer mission and partnership with the Institute of Technology in Medicines (Farmanguinhos/Fiocruz).

"We are finishing this important project with the merit of having left the factory producing, teams trained, and a set of technologies transferred that are now part of the initial Mozambican Drug Society portfolio", said the Production and Innovation in Health vice president, Marco Krieger.

The partnership enabled the manufacturing infrastructure implementation, the acquisition, donation, and equipment installation, the technologies transfer for the medicines production, and the team’s training so that the Mozambican Drug Society could be managed by the Mozambique government. It was more than 35 thousand hours of training that resulted in the production of 120 million pharmaceutical units in the new manufacturing facilities.

"This project was a huge challenge, due to the distance and the complexity of implementing a pharmaceutical industry with its peculiarities and strict and constantly evolving sanitary rules. Another challenge to be overcome was the need for capacity building, constant training and professionals development from various specialties such as pharmacists and engineers, among others. From this point of view, seeing the first pharmacy students starting to work in the plant is already a huge gain from the project point of view and its future sustainability", says the Farmanguinhos director, Jorge Mendonça.

The project was implemented in 2008 and resulted in the creation, development, and strengthening of the Mozambican Drug Society, the first public institution in the pharmaceutical sector on the African continent. In the note released by the Brazilian Cooperation Agency, both governments stress the venture's importance and highlight the results of cooperation between the countries in the area of health, such as the implementation of the Human Milk Bank (HMB) in Mozambique.