African Medicines Agency

The African Medicines Agency (AMA) is a proposed specialised agency of the African Union (AU) intended to facilitate the harmonisation of medical regulation throughout the African Union. Following a similar model to that of the European Medicines Agency, it is intended to have a wide scope covering medicines, traditional medicine, and medical devices.

The AMA is the latest step in efforts by the AU and regional African bodies to improve medical capacity in the continent. Such efforts are intended to address a deficiency in drug production and challenges posed by counterfeit and substandard products. Once it is created, it is expected that the AMA will supervise and absorb roles currently carried out by other bodies, such as regional harmonisation efforts and pan-AU creations such as the African Medicines Regulatory Harmonization (AMRH) initiative and its technical committees such as the African Vaccines Regulatory Forum (AVAREF), the Evaluation of Medicinal Products Technical Committees (EMP-TC) and the African Medical Devices Forum (AMDF).

The Treaty for the Establishment of the African Medicines Agency was adopted by the AU in February 2019. It came into effect on 5 November 2021, after ratification from the 15th AU member states, Cameroon.

The headquarters of the AMA will be located in Rwanda.

The inaugural Director General of the AMA has been appointed in June 2025: Dr Delese Mimi Darko from Ghana (former CEO of the Ghana FDA).