Miami, USA 26-27 July 2023 - PAHO and CARPHA organized a workshop Building Together a Stronger Caribbean Regulatory System, with national regulatory focal points of CARICOM. Its main objective was to strengthen and optimize the Caribbean Regulatory System (CRS) by identifying priority areas for collaboration and action identified by national regulatory focal points of CARICOM.
The Caribbean Regulatory System (CRS) is a regulatory unit within the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) as an initiative of CARICOM. Participating countries and territories included: Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Belize, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, along with PAHO and CARPHA delegates.
Along with discussions on the current state of the CRS, including gaps and challenges, national experiences were shared on marketing authorization, pharmacovigilance, substandard and falsified medical products, and access to safe and effective pandemic vaccines. It deepened into regulatory efficiencies for regulatory system strengthening, including reliance, regionalization, and the Global Benchmarking Tool. A key output of this workshop was identifying priority areas and activities by the focal points to inform the CRS’ work plan 2024-2025. There was a renewed commitment to cooperation among countries and territories, CARPHA and PAHO, to bolster the Caribbean Regulatory System and optimize its activities.
