The Federal Government has signed a strategic partnership agreement with the European Union (EU) and France under the Global Gateway’s Manufacturing and Access to Vaccines, Medicines and Health Technologies (MAV+) Initiative.
Th agreement is meant to advance Nigeria’s pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity and strengthen local health systems.
With a total investment of €10.2 million (including €10 million from the EU and €200,000 co-financing from the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs), the 44-month project (2025-2028) will be implemented in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), and other local partners.
The project, which is named Quality Uplift for Advancing Local Industry in Medicine Standards (Qualimeds Nigeria), aims to bolster Nigeria’s pharmaceutical ecosystem by expanding the local production of quality-assured medicines, improving access to essential health technologies, and promoting research-based innovation.
The project is also expected to reinforce NIPRD as a regional reference centre for critical activities, such as bioequivalence, stability studies, and quality control, fostering regional collaboration with Rwanda and Senegal.
Speaking during the signing ceremony at the just-concluded Nigeria-EU Health Investment Forum in Abuja, the EU Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Gautier Mignot, emphasised the importance of this collaboration.
The envoy described it as proof of the enduring partnership between the EU, France, and Nigerian and West African stakeholders.
He stressed the need to build robust, resilient, and efficient health and social welfare systems to ensure prosperity for all.
Mignot said: “Let’s combine the strength of our EU-Nigeria official partnership, EU-ECOWAS official partnership, with the dynamism of our companies on both sides to achieve a common goal: making Nigeria healthcare life-saving and sustainable, diversified, accessible, and affordable for all Nigerians, creating jobs and opportunities.”
The envoy said he wished to expand this vision across the rest of West Africa and the continent.
France’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Marc Fonbaustier, underscored France’s commitment to the partnership through the Global Health Strategy.
