Cape Town, South Africa: Experts of the African laboratory experts commended WHO’s Resolution On Strengthening Diagnostics Capacity adopted this year for facilitating the advancement of laboratory medicine in the African continent.
They expressed this at the 6th biennial conference of the African Society for Laboratory Medicine (ASLM) underway in Cape Town, South Africa, 12th to 15th December 2023 with the theme: “21st Century Laboratory Medicine Practice in Africa: then, now and future”.
ASLM CEO, Mr Nqobile Ndlovu thanked WHO saying that the diagnostic community of Africa would have remain in challenges if the WHO has not passing the “historic” resolution of the bill on strengthening diagnostics capacity to push diagnostics to the front of global health services.
“This was further cemented by the Regional Strategy on Diagnostics and Laboratory Services and Systems, which was passed in July this year (2023) for the WHO African Region”, added Ndlovu.
Coupled with the initiative that identifies and prioritises the key enablers, opportunities and solutions that will facilitate and accelerate improved diagnostics services to be achieved by regional resource partners, the bills have placed Africa at the centre and opportune time to define and change the future of diagnostics, according to Ndlovu.
Roche Diagnostics Company Executive Vice President Dr Allan Pamba, also commended the Kingdom of Eswatini to host a stakeholder dialogue towards a World Health Assembly (WHA) resolution on diagnostics capacity.
Dr. Pamba further praised all the Africans that voted and supported for the endorsement of the resolution. He closed off by announcing Roche’s commitment to expanding access to quality and sustainable diagnostic testing through their Diagnostics Ten Year Ambition Plan as part of their vision for diagnostics in Africa.
In a groundbreaking move toward advancing universal health coverage (UHC) and health equity, WHO on May 23, 2023 passed the resolution during its 76th World Health Assembly aspiring to address the challenges related to access, affordability, and quality of diagnostic tests across the world.