Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to improve access to medicines and vaccines in Indonesia Geneva, May 27th, 2024
The Ministry of Health (MoH) of Indonesia and the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) today announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to improve access to medicines and vaccines in Indonesia. The aim of the MoU is to support access to and uptake of selected, prioritised health products and strengthen local production of medicines and vaccines in Indonesia, including the work of the mRNA technology transfer Programme, of which BioFarma, the Indonesian vaccine manufacturer, is a part.
The Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin of the Republic of Indonesia stated, "We have a long-standing collaboration with MPP that has seen quality, affordable generic medicines made available in our country. We are now excited to formalise our partnership through this MoU to further improve access to essential vaccines and medicines for the people of Indonesia."
Charles Gore, the Executive Director of MPP, said, "What is so important for MPP is that the right medicines and vaccines are available in countries that need them. This MoU represents a significant step towards improving access to life-saving health products in Indonesia. We look forward to working with the Ministry of Health of Indonesia to achieve our shared goals."
The main areas of collaboration are:
- Assessing the current access gaps, prioritising products and regional needs, and supporting the introduction of innovative medicines that MPP has a licence for or can facilitate access to
- Providing technical assistance on local manufacturing of prioritised health products by identifying possible manufacturing partners, exploring opportunities for technology transfer, working with the manufacturers to increase their ability to produce high-quality and affordable versions of the prioritised products, and contributing to the development of capabilities for new technologies, such as mRNA vaccines.
- Enhancing health talent capacity by providing opportunities for learning, training, and capacity building for MoH personnel in various fields related to MPP's areas of work and expertise and exposing them to global health activities and discussions in which MPP is involved.
- Enhancing health talent capacity by providing opportunities for learning, training, and capacity building for MoH personnel in various fields related to MPP's areas of work and expertise and exposing them to global health activities and discussions in which MPP is involved.
This collaboration will elevate Indonesia capacity, both on improving access to medicines, vaccines, and new technologies, and on building the local production capacity to serve the health system in more sustainable setting.
