Pharmacy and Poisons Board

07/10/2026

Happy Customer Service Week!

The Pharmacy and Poisons Board is committed to going the extra mile in service delivery and upholding its mandate to support access to safe, quality and efficacious health products and technologies across Kenya.

07/10/2026

Happy Customer Service Week 2026!

Thank you for your trust and for choosing us. You are at the heart of everything we do. We will continue going the extra mile to improve your experience every day.

06/10/2026

Cabinet Secretary for Health Hon. Aden Duale chaired a consultative meeting with the Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) and the Kenya Pharmaceutical Association (KPA) on the rollout of the 2026 Good Pharmacy Practice Standards.

Present were PPB Chairperson Dr. John Munyu and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Ahmed Mohammed; KPA Deputy President Williamson Chumba and Secretary General Eric Gichane.

The meeting clarified that qualified and licensed pharmaceutical technologists may continue practising within their legal scope, including superintending Level 3B facilities. Existing facilities are not required to close or change their status within three months. Compliance will be guided by facility category, level of risk and applicable legal requirements.

The Ministry, PPB and KPA will continue consultations during implementation.

05/10/2026

https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/health/health-science/article/2001559439/africa-urged-to-harmonise-drug-regulation-to-boost-access-to-safe-medicines

The Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) urges stronger African cooperation to improve access to safe, quality and affordable health products.

05/10/2026

Mr. Kibet Kisorio, Head of Legal Services at PPB, explains how the department safeguards the Board’s mandate and ensures it operates within the law.

02/10/2026

Chair Calls for Stronger Regulatory Collaboration in Africa

Pharmacy and Poisons Board Chairperson Dr. John M. Munyu, MBS, has called for stronger regulatory collaboration and harmonisation across Africa to improve access to safe, quality, effective and affordable health products.

In his closing remarks at the 6th PharmaReg & MedDevReg AfriSummit 2026 on 28 September, Dr. Munyu also urged greater support for local manufacturing and African-made health products, with patients at the centre of regulatory efforts.

He called on delegates to turn the knowledge and experiences shared at the Summit into practical action, improved regulatory practices and sustainable partnerships, saying these would measure the Summit’s success.

01/10/2026

Kenya is strengthening its use of trusted regulatory decisions to support more efficient assessment of health products.

Speaking on the “Regulatory Updates” panel at AfriSummit 2026, Dr. Purity Mutinda outlined the Pharmacy and Poisons Board’s abridged, expedited and immediate recognition pathways. These pathways draw on decisions by reference authorities, including the US FDA, EU Notified Bodies, TGA, Health Canada, PMDA and WHO.

She also highlighted the need to strengthen quality management system auditing, improve digital regulatory platforms, expand stakeholder engagement and use artificial intelligence in screening and evaluations. The Board is investing in continuous training for assessors and auditors and keeping pace with emerging technologies, including machine learning and software as a medical device.

Dr. Mutinda also emphasised collaboration with the African Medicines Agency to advance regulatory reliance across the continent.

01/10/2026

Strengthening Medical Device Regulation Across Africa

Africa is making progress towards harmonised regulation of medical devices and in vitro diagnostic devices (IVDs), with initiatives supporting common requirements and greater reliance on trusted regulatory decisions.

At Afri Summit 2026, Dr. Pauline Wairimu, Head of Medical Devices at the Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB), highlighted the contribution of the AMRH Initiative, the African Medical Devices Forum and the African Medicines Agency (AMA).

She noted that regulatory fragmentation, capacity gaps and weak post-market surveillance remain challenges. Strengthening regulatory oversight, expanding digital systems, supporting local manufacturing and building sustainable regulatory capacity are essential to improving access to safe, quality-assured medical devices and IVDs across Africa.

29/09/2026

Kenya is moving towards an integrated national system that will enable health products to be authenticated and traced across the supply chain, improving visibility and supporting targeted recalls.

Presenting on “From Policy to Implementation: Kenya’s Roadmap to Full Pharmaceutical Track and Trace and Serialization” at the ongoing PharmaReg AfriSummit 2026, Pharmacy and Poisons Board Technical Advisor to the CEO Dr. Bramuel Tongola highlighted the country’s phased approach to strengthening product authentication and traceability.

He outlined progress in implementing the national authentication and traceability system, which is anchored in the Digital Health Act, 2023. PPB has begun batch declarations for locally manufactured and imported products and, in collaboration with the Digital Health Agency, developed a national product catalogue.

From 1 January 2027, the requirements will combine batch-level traceability with GS1-compliant unit-level serialization. Longer-term implementation will focus on broader serialization, advanced analytics, system integration and international interoperability.

The session emphasised that effective traceability depends on accurate product and supply-chain event data.

29/09/2026

Pharmacy and Poisons Board CEO Dr. Ahmed Mohamed joined Cabinet Secretary for Health Hon. Aden Duale at the 40th anniversary celebrations of the Mission for Essential Drugs and Supplies.

The event recognised MEDS’ contribution to the sourcing, testing, quality assurance and distribution of essential medicines and health products since 1986. It also marked the launch of MEDS Devane Company Limited.