Two officials of the Zambia Medicines Regulatory Authority (ZAMRA) have been appointed to technical committees of the African Medicines Agency (AMA).
Bonaventure Chilinde, ZAMRA’s director of laboratory services, has been appointed chairperson of the Quality Control Laboratories and Laboratory Network Technical Committee. Frank Laban, acting assistant director for marketing authorisation, joins the Medical Devices, Diagnostics and Emerging Technologies Technical Committee as a member.
For manufacturers and device suppliers across the continent, the committees matter more than the appointments: the laboratory network committee bears on how African quality control laboratories are organised and relied upon, and the devices committee on how diagnostics and emerging technologies are regulated as AMA pursues convergence. The chairship of the laboratory committee gives Zambia direct influence over the first of those.
ZAMRA director general Makomani Siyanga said the selections present an opportunity for Zambia to contribute to the development of harmonised regulatory systems across Africa. “These appointments demonstrate the importance of collaboration and the sharing of technical expertise among African medicines regulatory authorities,” he said. “Through the AMA Technical Committees, we look forward to contributing to improved quality assurance, stronger regulatory oversight and the responsible adoption of emerging medical technologies for the benefit of public health.”
ZAMRA described the establishment of the AMA Technical Committees as a step towards strengthening scientific cooperation, regulatory reliance and work-sharing among African countries, and said it remains committed to working with AMA, WHO and regional partners.
Source: Zambia Medicines Regulatory Authority press statement, Lusaka, 29 October 2026 — https://www.zamra.co.zm/2026/10/29/statement-by-the-director-general-of-the-zambia-medicinesregulatory-authority-zamra-mr-makomani-siyanga-on-theappointment-of-zamra-representatives-to-the-africanmedicines-agency-ama-technical-co/
