Regional manufacturing for timely, affordable, and quality-assured diagnostics across the continent

Africa carries nearly a quarter of the global disease burden yet, remains overwhelmingly dependent on imports for essential health products. Today, 95 percent of active pharmaceutical ingredients, 70 percent of medicines, and almost all diagnostics are sourced outside the continent. This dependency drives up costs, slows access, and leaves countries at risk of global supply chain disruptions. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed the weaknesses in Africa’s health supply chains.

The gap is especially acute in diagnostics. Despite Africa accounting for the highest burden of diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV, most diagnostic tools used to detect these conditions are produced elsewhere. Limited regional manufacturing undermines timely access and constrains Africa’s ability to control and ultimately eliminate these diseases.

PATH, supported by Unitaid and a coalition of African and global partners, has launched the Manufacturing to Accelerate Diagnostic Excellence (MADE) in Africa project to address this imbalance. Over the next four years, MADE will work to strengthen and expand Africa’s diagnostic manufacturing ecosystem by:

• Providing technical expertise to align production with international quality standards.
• Developing analyses and strategies for climate friendly diagnostics production.
• Increasing access to financing and investment for African manufacturers.
• Supporting an existing R&D ecosystem in Africa for diagnostics that will thrive long after the MADE project ends.
• Driving market-shaping strategies to secure sustainable demand and scale production.

By embedding high-quality, affordable diagnostics into regional supply chains, MADE will help meet everyday health needs, strengthen health systems, and build a resilient manufacturing base that can rapidly pivot to produce critical tools during future health emergencies.

Ultimately, MADE is about ensuring Africa can rely on its own innovation and capacity to protect the health of its people, independently, affordably, and sustainably.