History

In the early 2000s, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), FIP fostered the establishment of regional pharmaceutical forums to bring together national pharmaceutical organisations from each of the six geographical regions determined by the WHO. The aim was to increase dialogue, understanding and activity in each region, enabling the profession to have a greater impact on improving pharmacy services and health, and address the specific needs of each region. The forums were also to be the liaising structure between the WHO Regional Offices and FIP.

The six WHO regions and their corresponding pharmaceutical forums were:

•    African Region and the African Pharmaceutical Forum
•    Region of the Americas and the Pharmaceutical Forum of the Americas
•    South-East Asian Region (SEAR) and the SEARPharm Forum
•    European Region and the EuroPharm Forum (dissolved in 2015)
•    Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) and the EMRPharm Forum
•    Western Pacific Region and the Western Pacific Pharmaceutical Forum

In recent years, both the forums and FIP expressed a desire for a closer relationship with and a sense of belonging to FIP. This included a need for stronger support from FIP, both institutional and financial. Initial meetings between the forums and FIP were held in 2019 to explore options for integration, culminating in an agreement to integrate at the 2022 FIP Council meeting in Seville. This will facilitate FIP in consolidating its presence, visibility and influence across the WHO regions, including enhanced work with the WHO regional offices and partnerships with other regional stakeholders. The WHO regional officers are important stakeholders in the definition of health and pharmaceutical policies in regions, with significant influence on national policies. In addition to global WHO policies, the policy and technical documents of its regional offices are opportunities for collaboration.

Regional forums today

The Regional Pharmaceutical Forums are FIP constituencies which provide a network for all categories of FIP’s membership to collaborate on regional priorities. The forums operate as part of FIP on behalf of the regions, fully aligned with the FIP strategy, vision and ways of working and covering the same geographies as the WHO regions. Although the forums are autonomous in setting their agendas, projects and activities are determined jointly by the forums and FIP in response to regional needs and aligned to our global vision and mission.

Objectives

The forums have the following objectives:

• Improving health in the region and contributing towards the goal of universal health coverage through the development and improvement of pharmacy practice, pharmaceutical sciences and pharmaceutical education and workforce development.
• Supporting the implementation of projects aimed at the advancement of pharmacy practice, the pharmaceutical sciences and pharmaceutical education and workforce development in partnership with pharmaceutical organisations of the region.
• Cascading and promoting the implementation of the appropriate policies of FIP and of WHO at a regional level in relation to pharmacy practice, the pharmaceutical sciences and undergraduate, graduate and continuing education programmes for the pharmaceutical workforce.
• Utilising the FIP Development Goals as a framework for the advancement of pharmaceutical practice, sciences and education and workforce development across the region.
• Producing and disseminating advocacy and technical documents that support the policies and priority areas defined by FIP and the Forum’s member organisations.
• Acting as a conduit between FIP and pharmaceutical organisations of the region in the context of FIP’s global platform for provision and partnerships.
• Promoting responsible use of medicines in the region via education, policy development and implementation, through education and workforce development, and the development of pharmacy practice and the pharmaceutical sciences, and the expert contribution of pharmacists at all stages of the medicines supply chain.
• Promoting the standards of good pharmacy practice in all its disciplines.

Over the next year, priority projects include establishing working groups or professional development task forces, as needed, to work on humanitarian, workforce and access projects.

Governance & logistics

The forums essentially act as the regional arm of FIP with the WHO. They have speaking rights at the FIP Council, but no voting rights so as not to duplicate the votes of member organisations. The FIP regional pharmaceutical forums ways of working and statutes have been updated so that executive committees are standardised with a defined number of members and roles. There is an agreed a plan for governance ensuring geographical representation and inclusion, and FIP election processes have been adapted for the forums. There are FIP Bureau Liaisons for the forums, which are also supported by FIP staff.