Self-Benchmarking Exercise
As part of the activities of Work Package 3 (WP3), which focuses on enhancing the regulatory systems and clinical trial oversight functions of two National Regulatory Authorities (NRAs) in the West African region, experts from the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) conducted a two-week assisted self-benchmarking of the regulatory systems (RS) and clinical trial (CT) oversight functions of the Liberia Medicines and Health Regulatory Authority (LMHRA) using the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Benchmarking Tool (GBT).
The exercise began with an introductory training session on the GBT to equip participants with the necessary skills to understand and utilize the tool. Over 15 staff members from the LMHRA participated in this training, with 12 successfully passing the computerized self-test and receiving certificates of completion from WHO.
The self-benchmarking exercise was conducted via Zoom using video conferencing. Two breakout rooms were created for the respective regulatory functions, with officers assigned based on their areas of expertise. Experts from the FDA engaged LMHRA officers in an interactive session, discussing the sub-indicators of the RS and CT functions. Relevant supporting documents were uploaded to a shared MS Teams folder, where FDA experts guided LMHRA staff on how to meet the requirements for each sub-indicator. In cases where the LMHRA lacked certain documents, the experts provided sources and advice on how to develop them.
The FDA experts will maintain close contact with LMHRA officers as they continue their desk review of the supporting evidence uploaded to the MS Teams folder.
Below is a picture taken during the exercise.
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