Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq (KRG.org) – Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani joined the KRG Ministry of Health in announcing a new initiative with a British pharmaceutical quality control company yesterday to improve the quality of medicine available in the Kurdistan Region.

The agreement with Food and Drug Analytical Services Ltd (FDAS) comes as part of ongoing efforts by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to prevent the import and distribution of counterfeit products to the local market.

Speaking at the event, Prime Minister Barzani praised efforts that the Ministry of Health has recently made to address this issue and highlighted the important role that the Iraqi government and neighbouring countries can play in helping to address it.

“We want to partner with the international community in preventing the circulation of these products. This agreement will provide our people the tools and skills needed to create self-sustainability and ensure the well-being of our citizens,” the Prime Minister said.

The Ministry of Health has spearheaded an important campaign of public awareness regarding counterfeit medicine and has tasked various investigation committees to inspect products already in the Region.

“Products entering the country must be approved by the quality control of the Iraqi authorities or the newly established quality control system being implemented by the KRG Ministry of Health,” Minister of Health Dr Rekawt Hama Rasheed said.

Minister Rasheed also announced that drugs processed and approved by FDAS Ltd would have a universal pricing mechanism.

According to the agreement, FDAS will work closely with the KRG Ministry of Health to train and strengthen the capacity of the Kurdistan Medicine Control Agency (KMCA), whose objectives include: improving health-related policies, providing safe and effective imports of medicine, and the promotion of research and development.

The sales director of FDAS, Mr Eric Hilton, outlined his company’s recent efforts on this initiative and explained the training programmes already in progress for staff members of the KMCA at the event.

Several other KRG and foreign officials also participated in the ceremony, including the Minister of Natural Resources Dr Ashti Hawrami; Minister of Trade and Industry Sinan Celebi; the Governor of Erbil Nawzad Hadi, and several officials and diplomats based in Erbil.