Good Morning Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my pleasure to be here today as we launch the Mobile Pharmacovigilance Electronic Reporting System (mPvERS). This is another great milestone achieved by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board towards the monitoring of quality, safety and efficacy of health products and technologies in Kenya.

As you are aware, the Pharmacy and Poisons Board is the Regional Centre of Regulatory Excellence (RCORE) in Pharmacovigilance. Therefore, it plays a key role in the African Medicines Regulatory Harmonisation Programme by the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD (AUDA- NEPAD). Other bodies include the East African Community (EAC), and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) medicines regulation harmonization initiatives.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The public is increasingly becoming aware of health-related matters including disease conditions, disease management and adverse events following the use of health products and technologies. Patients are able to provide detailed first- hand information about their experiences with medicines, and how these medicines have affected their life.

This includes reports of adverse events for “over the counter” (OTC) medicines, herbal medicines, vaccines and reports on suspected poor quality health products and technologies.

Consumer reporting is therefore a useful tool in empowering the consumers, and improving their involvement in the management of their own health. In this regard, the Pharmacy and Poisons Board through the support from the USAID Medicines, Technologies and Pharmaceutical Services (MTaPS) Program has developed a mobile pharmacovigilance electronic reporting system (mPvERS).

This is a mobile based solution that provides for reporting on both Android and iOS operating system, as well as an Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) platform. Through the USSD code, the public will be able to report on adverse events following the use of medicines, vaccines and medical devices. In addition, they shall be able to report on poor quality health products and technologies.

The solution is developed to supplement the existing national reporting system PvERS II, which was launched in March 2021 to enhance consumer reporting.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Ministry of Health through Pharmacy and Poisons Board is committed to providing Kenyans with safe, quality and efficacious health products and health technologies. We are therefore looking forward to great outputs from these innovative solutions.

Finally, I urge you all to support this initiative as we strive to protect health and safety of the public by ensuring quality, safety and efficacy of health products and technologies circulating in Kenya.

It is now my great pleasure to declare the mPvERS system officially launched.

I thank you all.

Dr Rashid Aman
Chief Administrative Secretary.