National University of Medical Sciences

NUMS and DRAP ink 5 year DOU on exchange of information and capacity building

National University of Medical Sciences(NUMS) and Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan(DRAP) inked 5-year Document of Understanding here Wednesday to exchange information, compliance, training and capacity building in view of the university’s plans revolving around Bioequivalence and Clinical Trials involving human subjects.

The DOU was signed by NUMS Vice Chancellor Lt Gen Syed Muhammad Imran Majeed HI(M) (Retd) and Chief Executive Officer DRAP, Asim Rauf at a simple ceremony here. Director NUMS Office of Research, Innovation and Commercial(ORIC) Dr Awais e Siraj and DRAP Director Pharmacy Services Dr. Abdul Rashid were present during the signing ceremony.

In his brief remarks on the occasion, the Vice Chancellor said that NUMS was planning to establish the National Institute of Advanced Studies and Research. (NIASAR) The Planning Division of the Finance Ministry, he said, had earmarked special funds to specifically train NUMS’s faculty from the world leading universities like Harvard and Queen Mary for supporting the national endeavor of research and development. NUMS Pro Vice Chancellor Administration Maj Gen Syed Ammar Reza Hamadani HI(M) (Retd) who was present on the occasion, was working on this project, he added.

The Vice Chancellor said the DOU between the two institutions, would help realize words of the Father- of- the Nation, Quaid-e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who once said, that whatever products are created, should carry the brand name of Pakistan.

DRAP CEO, Asim Rauf on the occasion billed the DOU as “a paradigm shift to further achieve DRAP and NUMS objectives,” to lay foundation for research and quality products in the country. He said the percentage of spurious and sub-standard drugs in Pakistan were almost the same as were in the US and Europe. The establishment of state of the art Bioequivalence laboratory at the National Institute of Advanced Studies and Research would improve standard of medicines in the country, he said.

The cooperation between the two national institutions, he said, would synergize DRAP to monitor and manufacturing of products which would help flush out spurious drugs from the country.