Pristina, 19 October - The European Commission Liaison Office launched on Tuesday (19 October) a two-year project to support the Kosovo Medicines Agency (KMA) in reaching European standards performance.

The project, implemented by the German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Services (BfArM), seeks to review and strengthen the KMA’s internal structure, and that of the regulatory system in Kosovo.

Melvin Asin, Deputy Head of Operations at EC Liaison Office said: \"We hope that the project will create a foundation for ensuring quality, safety and efficiency of human medical products and medical devices in Kosovo. Furthermore, the project aims to further develop the KMA\'s human resource capacities so it can advance and improve pharmaceutical policies and legislations in accordance with EU standards.\" 

The KMA will have its policy, management, operation and vision reviewed by the end of the project in order to improve its capacities. Also, the legal framework will be reassessed and made compatible with EU legislation and standards.

The project will look into the level of EU standards and international guidelines being applied in Kosovo. The current inspection and laboratory methods for controlling medicinal products will also be analysed.

The support provided for the health sector through this project will see institutional capacities perform better with improved skills in order to meet all the European Medicines Agency standards.

The consumers will indirectly benefit from a functional medicinal market which will directly guarantee them quality medicinal service and products.

The €1 million project, implemented by the German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Services (BfArM) in partnership with the German Technical Cooperation (GTZ), aims to improve the health service delivery by coordinating all relevant stakeholders, including international partners.