Luanda: An Angolan delegation, headed by the Minister of Health, Slvia Lutucuta, visited the Medicines and Medical Devices Agency of Serbia (ALIMS) in Belgrade, as part of the ongoing ministerial mission to this European country.
According to Angola Press News Agency, the initiative aimed to learn about the Serbian experience in the field of regulation and control of medicines and medical devices. It points out that it also served to identify cooperation opportunities and recognize good practices capable of contributing to the reinforcement of Angola's institutional, technical, and lab capacity in the pharmaceutical sector.
The note states that during the meeting, matters related to the authorization and registration of medicines, quality control, pharmacovigilance, clinical trials, market surveillance, lab capacity, medical devices, and the fight against the falsification and circulation of substandard medicines were addressed. On the occasion, cited in the document, Slvia Lutucuta highlighted the historical ties of friendship between Angola and Serbia, framing the mission within the strategy to strengthen bilateral cooperation in sectors considered strategic.
She underlined the importance of ensuring the availability of safe and effective medicines and medical devices, taking into account the role of health regulation in protecting the population's health. Among the most relevant topics advanced was the fight against falsified and substandard medicines, within the mechanisms of market surveillance, traceability, lab analysis, and ways to control and withdraw fake products.
The Serbian side, according to the press release, highlighted the importance of international cooperation for the strengthening of regulatory systems and expressed its readiness to deepen institutional dialogue with Angola. The Angolan ministerial mission continues on Wednesday, with a visit to the Batajnica Hospital in Belgrade, where the delegation learned about the operation of the dialysis centre and the palliative care unit, including the organisation and provision of healthcare services.
Minister Slvia Lutucuta has been carrying out a working visit to Serbia since August 17 to address bilateral cooperation in the field of health, with prospects of transforming relations into a concrete agenda for staff training, medicine production, scientific research, and innovation, among other areas.
