Brazil and PAHO host strategic meeting to strengthen regional supply of medicines, vaccines, and health technologies

Jul 30, 2025 News

Kaieteur News – In a bid to boost regional health security and reduce dependence on global supply chains, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and Brazil’s Ministry of Health brought together leading manufacturers of health product at a strategic workshop in Sao Paulo last week.

Hosted in collaboration with the Sao Paulo Federation of Industries (FIESP), the meeting aimed to expand the availability of essential medicines, vaccines, and other critical health technologies across the Americas. At the heart of the discussion were PAHO’s Regional Revolving Funds, mechanisms that pool procurement to ensure countries across the Americas have better access to vaccines, medicines, and other health technologies at affordable prices.

Held on 25 July, the workshop also sought to promote the expansion in the supply of strategic health products in the Americas and strengthen regional production capacity and explore opportunities for collaboration, a release from the PAHO said.

Greater production capacity in the Americas is fundamental to ensure better access to medicines, vaccines, and health technologies,” PAHO Director, Dr. Jarbas Barbosa said. “This partnership with Brazil and FIESP will enable more producers to participate in PAHO’s Revolving Funds,” he added, and “will inspire other countries to join the effort.”

The event also marked the launch of Brazil’s first RNA Competence Center, a new initiative led by the Ministry of Health and the Brazilian Company for Industrial Research and Innovation (Embrapii). The center will focus on advancing messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine technologies, an area of growing importance for pandemic preparedness and rapid vaccine development.

This initiative reflects PAHO’s broader strategy to advance regional manufacturing and foster innovation in health technologies.

PAHO’s Revolving Funds

PAHO’s Regional Revolving Funds are technical cooperation mechanisms that enable countries of the Americas to access quality vaccines, essential medicines, and public health supplies at affordable prices in a timely and transparent manner. By pooling their purchases and jointly planning demand through PAHO’s Revolving Funds, countries in the Americas have achieved affordable prices, saving approximately 50% on vaccines and other public health supplies. In the last two years alone, this initiative has benefited around 180 million people in the region. Since their inception, the Funds have helped to improve equitable access in countries throughout the Region. They have played a key role in the fight against diseases such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis. They have also helped to improve immunization coverage and reduce maternal and child mortality.

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Brazil, Medicines, Ministry of Health, PAHO, vaccines

Latest News