Mpedigree
Encyclopedia
mPedigree refers both to a world-first technology platform that interconnects GSM mobile networks in the West African republic of Ghana
to a central registry wherein pedigree information of product brands belonging to participant manufacturers are stored, as well as the organisation that has emerged in the country to manage and promote this registry to organisations and firms in the health sector of Ghana and Africa. The latter is named the mPedigree Network. In November 2008, the Nigerian National Agency for Drug Administration & Control (NAFDAC) reported to an industry publication that its Technical Committee was evaluating the security credentials of the mPedigree system for a possible roll-out in that country. NAFDAC and the Nigerian pharmaceutical companies formed a consortium in June 2009 to roll the service out for all medicines in Nigeria, though this has not happened as at end of 2010.
When consumers buy a product made by a manufacturer participating in the scheme, they are able to query the pedigree information stored in the registry by means of a free SMS message. An automatic response from the registry certifies whether the particular product is truly "from source" or not. The proponents of the scheme believe the system will be effective in the fight against counterfeit medicines in the region..
In May 2010 it was reported that Hewlett Packard (HP), Zain Telecommunications, and undisclosed pharmaceutical and other partners had signed up to the mPedigree program with plans to extend the service to multiple countries across Africa. Some West African companies were also reported as using the technology.
and Kumasi
, were largely successful. In a forum convened together with the US-based Partnership for Safe Medicines and the Ghana Food & Drugs Board, the Deputy Chief Executive of the Food & Drugs Board announced that the Ghanaian Authorities were investigating the introduction of the mPedigree platform as a national standard based on the outcomes of the trial.
Technology Pioneers Program, Ashoka
, Nokia
, and a number of telecoms carriers and pharmaceutical regulators in Ghana, Nigeria, and India.
On 4 December 2008, the World Economic Forum
announced that it has selected mPedigree as a 2009 Technology Pioneer. The World Economic Forum's Technology Pioneer Program alumni includes NanoSolar, Google
, the Wikimedia Foundation
(publishers of the Wikipedia), Mozilla
, and Raindance Technologies.
In November 2010, mPedigree won the start-up category of the Global Security Challenge in London, becoming the first organisation in the Southern Hemisphere to win the award according to the organisers.
In February 2011, mPedigree won the 2011 Netexplorateur Grand Prix at UNESCO in Paris, for combating fake medicine in Africa through texting.
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
to a central registry wherein pedigree information of product brands belonging to participant manufacturers are stored, as well as the organisation that has emerged in the country to manage and promote this registry to organisations and firms in the health sector of Ghana and Africa. The latter is named the mPedigree Network. In November 2008, the Nigerian National Agency for Drug Administration & Control (NAFDAC) reported to an industry publication that its Technical Committee was evaluating the security credentials of the mPedigree system for a possible roll-out in that country. NAFDAC and the Nigerian pharmaceutical companies formed a consortium in June 2009 to roll the service out for all medicines in Nigeria, though this has not happened as at end of 2010.
Methodology
Manufacturers who sign on to the mPedigree scheme upload pedigree information of each pack of medicine into the central registry using standard mass serialisation methods such as those employed in the RFID-enabled e-pedigree system familiar in the United States and elsewhere.When consumers buy a product made by a manufacturer participating in the scheme, they are able to query the pedigree information stored in the registry by means of a free SMS message. An automatic response from the registry certifies whether the particular product is truly "from source" or not. The proponents of the scheme believe the system will be effective in the fight against counterfeit medicines in the region..
In May 2010 it was reported that Hewlett Packard (HP), Zain Telecommunications, and undisclosed pharmaceutical and other partners had signed up to the mPedigree program with plans to extend the service to multiple countries across Africa. Some West African companies were also reported as using the technology.
Trials
The platform has been in testing since 28 January 2008. Media reports in Ghana suggest that monitored trials conducted in the two major cities in the country, AccraAccra
Accra is the capital and largest city of Ghana, with an urban population of 1,658,937 according to the 2000 census. Accra is also the capital of the Greater Accra Region and of the Accra Metropolitan District, with which it is coterminous...
and Kumasi
Kumasi
Kumasi is a city in southern central Ghana's Ashanti region. It is located near Lake Bosomtwe, in the Rain Forest Region about northwest of Accra. Kumasi is approximately north of the Equator and north of the Gulf of Guinea...
, were largely successful. In a forum convened together with the US-based Partnership for Safe Medicines and the Ghana Food & Drugs Board, the Deputy Chief Executive of the Food & Drugs Board announced that the Ghanaian Authorities were investigating the introduction of the mPedigree platform as a national standard based on the outcomes of the trial.
Partnerships
MPedigree lists as its supporting partners: the World Economic ForumWorld Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum is a Swiss non-profit foundation, based in Cologny, Geneva, best known for its annual meeting in Davos, a mountain resort in Graubünden, in the eastern Alps region of Switzerland....
Technology Pioneers Program, Ashoka
Ashoka
Ashok Maurya or Ashoka , popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was an Indian emperor of the Maurya Dynasty who ruled almost all of the Indian subcontinent from ca. 269 BC to 232 BC. One of India's greatest emperors, Ashoka reigned over most of present-day India after a number of military conquests...
, Nokia
Nokia
Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki...
, and a number of telecoms carriers and pharmaceutical regulators in Ghana, Nigeria, and India.
Social Marketing
In April 2008, mPedigree announced that it had commissioned the first documentary on the fake drugs phenomenon produced within West Africa by a locally-based production House. This documentary was debuted in partnership with the German overseas cultural establishment, the Goethe Institut, and later premiered on Ghanaian television networks, including the national broadcaster, GTV.Awards
In November 2009, mPedigree lost out to Air Semiconductor in the finals of the 2009 Institution of Engineering Technology's Innovation Awards.On 4 December 2008, the World Economic Forum
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum is a Swiss non-profit foundation, based in Cologny, Geneva, best known for its annual meeting in Davos, a mountain resort in Graubünden, in the eastern Alps region of Switzerland....
announced that it has selected mPedigree as a 2009 Technology Pioneer. The World Economic Forum's Technology Pioneer Program alumni includes NanoSolar, Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
, the Wikimedia Foundation
Wikimedia Foundation
Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. is an American non-profit charitable organization headquartered in San Francisco, California, United States, and organized under the laws of the state of Florida, where it was initially based...
(publishers of the Wikipedia), Mozilla
Mozilla
Mozilla is a term used in a number of ways in relation to the Mozilla.org project and the Mozilla Foundation, their defunct commercial predecessor Netscape Communications Corporation, and their related application software....
, and Raindance Technologies.
In November 2010, mPedigree won the start-up category of the Global Security Challenge in London, becoming the first organisation in the Southern Hemisphere to win the award according to the organisers.
In February 2011, mPedigree won the 2011 Netexplorateur Grand Prix at UNESCO in Paris, for combating fake medicine in Africa through texting.