WACI Health Joins MADE: Unitaid Initiative to Strengthen Diagnostic Manufacturing Capacity in Africa

WACI Health is proud to be part of a new initiative, Manufacturing to Accelerate Diagnostic Excellence (MADE), to strengthen diagnostic manufacturing capacity across the continent.

Africa carries a quarter of the global disease burden, yet it still relies heavily on imported health products. That leaves countries vulnerable to supply chain disruptions, long delays and high costs. A diagnostic is often the first step to getting the right treatment, so who makes these tools, and where, matters.

MADE is led by PATH with US$11 million in funding from Unitaid. It will support African manufacturers to develop high-quality diagnostic tests, improve access to raw materials, and scale up production so their products can reach regional and global markets. The consortium brings together African and global partners: the African Society for Laboratory Medicine (ASLM), SCIDaR – Solina Centre for International Development and Research, the University of Cape Town, Open Capital and WACI Health.

Beyond the factory floor, MADE also works on the wider ecosystem. This includes strengthening quality management and research capacity, supporting regulatory harmonisation, and creating demand and market access, so that locally made diagnostics actually reach the people who need them.

Our role

Strong manufacturing is only part of the picture. African-made diagnostics also need to be trusted, demanded and adopted by health systems and communities. WACI Health will lead the community and civil society engagement work under MADE across the project countries. We will:

• Form and strengthen Community Advisory Boards (CABs) in each country, with ASLM-led learning sessions to build their capacity.
• Convene civil society stakeholders so that communities have a voice in how regionally manufactured diagnostics are introduced.
• Co-design advocacy strategies with CABs and civil society, working closely with Solina, which leads country market-access engagement with ministries of health.
• Drive advocacy that amplifies the efforts of the wider MADE project and builds support for regionally manufactured diagnostics.

Together, we are laying the groundwork for more self-reliant, equitable and resilient health systems, with communities at the centre.

Learn more

Read the press release from Unitaid: Unitaid announces two new flagship investments to boost regional manufacturing of diagnostics and medicines in Africa