Ghana’s plan to produce at least 70% of its pharmaceutical needs locally will depend on reliable health sector payments, stronger regulatory systems and a new generation of industrial pharmacists, the President of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), Dr Kofi Nsia-Poku, has warned.
He said the country’s dependence on imported medicines exposes manufacturers and patients to global supply disruptions, foreign exchange pressures and shortages, calling for coordinated investment across pharmaceutical production, regulation and specialist training.
Dr Nsia-Poku, an industrial pharmacist, made the remarks at the 2026 Annual General Meeting of the Ghana Chapter of the West African Postgraduate College of Pharmacists, where industry and professional leaders discussed how to strengthen medicine security and support universal health coverage.
Ghana and other West African countries import an estimated 70% to 80% of their essential pharmaceutical products, leaving them vulnerable when international supply chains are disrupted.
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the risks. Dr Nsia-Poku recalled how Ghana struggled to obtain basic products, including paracetamol, vitamins and hand sanitisers, during the crisis.
He said the experience demonstrated why local manufacturing should be treated as a strategic priority rather than simply an industrial development objective.
“True medicine security goes beyond just in-time logistics. It is a vital clinical intervention,” he said.
Local production needs a stronger financial base
Dr Nsia-Poku said the government’s five-year strategy to increase domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing to meet at least 70% of local demand would require more than factories and production equipment.
Manufacturers also need a reliable supply of inputs, access to finance, skilled personnel and a health procurement system capable of paying suppliers on time.
He identified delayed payments by the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) as a major concern, warning that payment delays can strain manufacturers’ cash flow, disrupt supply chains and ultimately affect the availability of medicines.
He called for dedicated procurement arrangements for locally manufactured medicines and prompt NHIS payments to help sustain production and prevent shortages.
The warning highlights the connection between public health financing and industrial development. Even where local factories have the capacity to produce essential medicines, delayed payments from major buyers can limit their ability to purchase raw materials, maintain production and meet new orders.
Dr Nsia-Poku also linked pharmaceutical manufacturing to environmental protection, particularly the need for clean water. He said pollution of water bodies through illegal mining could threaten an industry that depends on highly purified water to manufacture medicines safely.
Industry wants to move into complex medicines
Ghana’s pharmaceutical ambitions extend beyond basic formulations to more specialised products, including injections, therapeutic infusions, anaesthesia products and biological medicines.
Dr Nsia-Poku said this transition would require greater investment in industrial research, formulation science, technology transfer and bioequivalence testing.
He also pointed to opportunities under the African Continental Free Trade Area and ECOWAS frameworks, arguing that regulatory cooperation could allow quality-assured medicines manufactured in Ghana to reach larger markets across West Africa.
However, he said regional market access would depend on confidence in the quality and safety of locally produced medicines.
He cited the Food and Drugs Authority’s achievement of World Health Organization Maturity Level 3 as an important foundation, while noting the regulator’s work towards Level 4.
He called for stronger harmonisation of medicines registration and pharmacy regulation across West Africa to reduce duplication and make it easier for compliant manufacturers to supply other countries.
Post-market surveillance and pharmacovigilance would also be needed to monitor medicine safety after products reach patients.
Skills shortage threatens expansion
A major constraint, Dr Nsia-Poku said, is the shortage of specialist personnel capable of running advanced pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities.
He argued that postgraduate pharmacy training has traditionally placed greater emphasis on clinical and hospital practice, and must now expand to prepare pharmacists for industrial roles.
He said Ghana needs specialists in advanced manufacturing, biological products, quality management, data integrity, regulatory science and technology transfer.
The college should work more closely with pharmaceutical companies to provide practical training inside manufacturing facilities, he added, so that graduates can acquire the experience required to manage modern production lines.
Without that shift, he warned, Ghana could invest in advanced facilities but remain dependent on foreign technical expertise to operate them.
Pharmacists urged to shape medicine security policy
The Chairperson of the college’s Ghana Chapter, Mrs Irene Agyeman, said the conference was intended to move the discussion beyond identifying vulnerabilities towards practical proposals and policy advocacy.
She said dependence on imported medicines and pharmaceutical materials exposed Ghana to external supply disruptions and foreign exchange pressures, making investment in domestic production and stronger regulation increasingly important.
The chapter would also examine ways to combat substandard and falsified medicines and strengthen the contribution of hospital and community pharmacies to primary healthcare.
Mrs Agyeman said specialist pharmacists had a role to play in manufacturing, research, quality assurance, regulation and patient-centred care, adding that postgraduate training needed to reflect the changing demands of the health sector.
She said the chapter was committed to translating conference discussions into policy advocacy aimed at improving medicine availability and security.
For Ghana, the challenge is to align its industrial ambitions with the financial and technical systems needed to sustain them. Greater local production could reduce exposure to international supply shocks, but the benefits will depend on whether manufacturers can access reliable payments, meet quality standards, recruit skilled personnel and compete in regional markets.
