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Africa’s Road to Pharma Traceability: Updates from 2025 Onwards
Counterfeit medicines remain one of the biggest health threats in Africa. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the continent accounts for 42% of all falsified medicines worldwide, and in some low- and middle-income countries, 10% of medical products are either fake or below quality standards.
To counter this, African regulators are strengthening their frameworks for pharmaceutical serialization and traceability. Several countries are now rolling out national track-and-trace systems, a move that both improves patient safety and brings them closer to international compliance standards.
Current Developments Across Key Markets
Ethiopia: Blockchain-enabled supply chain security (Ethiopia blockchain track and trace)
The Ethiopian Food and Drug Authority (EFDA) is building a blockchain-based traceability system to secure the pharmaceutical supply chain.
- Registration with the EFDA-MVC Traceability Hub is required by 25 July 2025.
- From 3 June 2026, systems must record traceability events and enable automated reporting.
- By 1 December 2026, full compliance with aggregation will be mandatory.
Egypt: National unified platform in progress (Egypt serialization deadlines)
The Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA) has issued draft guidelines for a national traceability platform.
- Imported medicines must comply by 1 February 2026.
- Local production must comply by 1 August 2026.
Zimbabwe: TRVST pilot with UNICEF (Zimbabwe TRVST serialization pilot)
The Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe (MCAZ), working with UNICEF, has launched its first pilot using the TRVST application. The official guidelines set out three stages:
- Pilot projects in the first year
- Wider rollout over the next three years
- Full enforcement within five years
The Gambia: DIAMIND system planned for 2025
The Medicines Control Agency (MCA) is preparing to implement the DIAMIND Government Solutions system in late 2025.
Guinea-Bissau: Regulatory decree signed
The country’s Minister of Public Health recently signed a decree that activates the framework for a National Pharmaceutical Traceability System.
Nigeria: NAFDAC serialization regulations 2024 (Nigeria pharma serialization regulations 2024 explained)
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) is one of Africa’s early movers. Its Pharmaceutical Products Traceability Regulations 2024 are already in force. Progress so far includes:
- Full serialization across products
- GS1 barcodes piloted on vaccines
- Deployment of commercial traceability platforms
Rwanda: Serialization roadmap to 2028 (Rwanda serialization 2027)
In May 2025, Rwanda finalized its traceability guidelines. Compliance will be rolled out gradually, with full implementation expected between 2027 and 2028.
Algeria: GS1 pilot with Groupe Saidal (Algeria Saidal GS1 pilot)
Early in 2025, Algeria issued GS1-based guidance and began a national pilot program with Groupe Saidal SPA.