Our business model – interacting with governments, NGOs and industry, for the benefit of individual of
low income women

Concept Foundation’s principal purpose, as defined in its Business Plan, is to increase access to sexual, reproductive and maternal health products of assured quality and affordable cost, in lower and middle income countries worldwide. In order to achieve this, it focuses on the identification and introduction of quality health technologies, pharmaceuticals and other health products that otherwise would not be available to the public sector, as well as assisting others in their endeavours.

We have cultivated a unique business model and position: as a bridge and facilitator between the public reproductive/maternal health and commercial manufacturing sectors to ensure access to essential medicines to women in less-developed countries. We also have a unique competence in developing access-to-medicines programmes for drugs for reproductive health and in ensuring their appropriate use in developing countries. Furthermore, Concept firmly believes that women in less developed countries have the right to access medicines of similar quality to those available in developed markets. It has established significant expertise to offer agencies and companies working in the field that require support and information on pharmaceutical quality assurance.

It is these three attributes that underpin the efforts of the organization, conveyed through its staff and consultants.

Concept strives to achieve maximal benefits through the focused management of intellectual property and encouraging manufacturers to provide quality products that otherwise would not be available to the public sector, at an affordable cost. This is especially critical in those countries which have a limited commercial market in order to avoid marginalization of the poor. We accomplish this by:

• Developing intellectual property for reproductive and maternal health products
• Technology transfer to the developing world and out-licensing the manufacturing and distribution of pharmaceuticals
• Establishing Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) with pharmaceutical companies in, and for, developing countries, and fostering
  south-to-south cooperation
• Supporting systematic, coordinated and strategic product introduction in priority countries

Our specific role in the partnership is through: the provision of intellectual property to allow the registration of the product with stringent drug regulatory agencies, including toxicology and bioequivalence studies; compiling drug regulatory dossiers that comply with International Conference on Harmonization (ICH) requirements; and by identifying distributors and obtaining market authorization in less-developed countries. Our long-term commitment is to ensure: product quality manufactured under international Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMP) and access to affordable products for poorer women.