Markets, development assistance, and access to medicines in Africa: lessons from the Affordable Medicines Facility for malaria (AMFm).

Abstract

Access to essential medicines in low-and middle-income countries is affected by market failures and government failures. This paper review the design and lessons learned from the multi-country Phase I of the Affordable Medicines for Malaria (AMFm), and the political economy of decision making around findings from its independent evaluation. It concludes with reflections on lessons learned, the potential applicability of the private-public approach to other health commodities and countries, and the implications of this experience for evidence-based decisions in global health and development assistance.