The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), in collaboration with the World Health Organization, ran an intensive three-day capacity building workshop in Islamabad from 02–04 December 2025 focused on strengthening Market Surveillance and control of substandard and falsified medical products.
More than 60 frontline therapeutic goods regulators from DRAP, Provincial Drug Control Directorates and quality control laboratory professionals attended to sharpen national inspection and response capabilities. The programme combined policy direction with practical exercises to ensure participants could apply lessons immediately in provincial and federal settings.
Dr Obaidullah, CEO DRAP, stressed the need for harmonised, risk-based systems aligned with WHO Global Benchmarking Tool maturity pathways and reiterated a national commitment to integrity and zero tolerance for substandard and falsified products. Mr Zeeshan Nazir Ch, Director QA< DRAP, formally welcomed attendees while Ms Pantelia Gkoura, WHO Consultant, and Ms Ellen Mpangananji Thom, OIC and Deputy WHO Representative, provided global perspectives. Mr Muhammad Sohail, DG Drug Control Punjab, highlighted front-line enforcement challenges and successes.
WHO experts and DRAP leadership integrated international best practices from regulators such as FDA, EMA and PIC/S with Pakistan’s priorities for WHO GBT maturity level 3 readiness. Sessions concentrated on risk-based surveillance approaches including post-marketing surveillance, integrated data sharing across GSMS, customs and FIA, streamlined laboratory workflows and a national recall system tailored to the Pakistani context.
Participants completed full incident simulations and tabletop exercises that replicated the full lifecycle from risk scoring and sampling through laboratory analysis, recall actions and inter-agency coordination. These practical drills were designed to create consistent national implementation and strengthen operational readiness at both federal and provincial levels.
DRAP reaffirmed its commitment to expand surveillance capacity, harmonise Federal-Provincial functions and accelerate WHO GBT ML3 preparedness. The workshop closed with a shared vision for systemic strengthening and recognition from WHO headquarters for Pakistan’s steps to secure medicine quality and public safety.
