A multinational biotechnology healthcare company, Roche, has lamented the low inclusion of Africa in global pharma studies, revealing that only 2.4 per cent of patients from the continent are enrolled in annual global clinical trials.

According to the company, African patients make up only about two per cent of genomic data for clinical trials despite the fact that the continent deals with more than 24 per cent of global disease burden.

These statistical facts were made known in a technical presentation which explained why the company launched the pilot Roche Advancing Inclusive Research Africa Site Alliance Project in Africa.

The Medical Director, Roche Products Nigeria Limited, Dr. Bola Oyedeji, while speaking at the launch of the project recently, said, “Only 2.4 per cent of clinical trials in the world are conducted in Africa and only two per cent of global genetic data is from Africa clinical trials out of the eight billion world population.”

He said the mission of Roche was to deliver three to five times more benefits to patients at half the cost to society, noting that the project would help in closing the data gaps and improving health in the long-term for all Nigerians and Africans.

“The vision of the Roche Advancing Inclusive Research Africa Site Alliance project is to create a site network in Africa to enable recruitment and retention of underrepresented patient populations to enrich science and enable the delivery of innovation so we can eliminate disparity in outcomes for all patients.

Source: HealthWise