The West African Health Organisation (WAHO) and ECOWAS Member States have adopted three harmonised regional tools aimed at strengthening ethical and regulatory oversight of health research during epidemics and other public health emergencies.
WAHO disclosed this in a post on its official X account on Tuesday following a regional workshop held in Lomé, Togo, from June 3 to June 6.
According to the organisation, the adopted tools include a checklist for the ethical review of research protocols and a coordination protocol between National Research Ethics Committees (NRECs) and National Medicines Regulatory Authorities (NMRAs).
It said the third tool is a regional framework for accelerated review and emergency authorisation during epidemics.
The workshop was convened to strengthen ethical and regulatory systems for research conducted during public health emergencies across the ECOWAS region.
WAHO said participants also launched a regional platform for the simultaneous submission of research protocols to ethics committees in member states.
It explained that the platform would facilitate and accelerate the review of research projects at the regional level by eliminating the need for sequential national submissions.
According to the organisation, the checklist for ethical review of research protocols provides NRECs with a standardised tool for assessing studies during disease outbreaks.
It noted that the standardisation would help reduce delays when several countries are required to review similar research protocols during cross-border epidemics.
WAHO said the coordination protocol between NRECs and NMRAs was designed to align ethical and regulatory approval processes.
According to it, this would enable interventions and medicines to move through review processes more efficiently while maintaining safety and oversight standards.
The organisation added that the regional framework for accelerated review and emergency authorisation establishes procedures for faster decision-making when epidemics are declared.
“It provides a common approach for Member States responding to urgent public health threats,” it stated.
WAHO said a key outcome of the workshop was the election of a new Executive Committee of the West African Network of Ethics Committees (WANEC).
According to it, Senegal was elected President, Nigeria Vice-President, and The Gambia Executive Secretary.
It added that Sierra Leone emerged Coordinator for Stakeholder Research, Guinea-Bissau Coordinator for Resource Mobilisation and Partnerships, while Côte d’Ivoire was elected Coordinator for Training and Accreditation.
The organisation said the workshop brought together representatives of ECOWAS Member States, NRECs, NMRAs, researchers, and technical and financial partners whose contributions helped shape the final harmonised tools and governance structures.
It said the meeting sought to strengthen ethical and regulatory frameworks governing health research, promote closer institutional coordination, and develop harmonised regional tools to support effective responses to current and future public health emergencies.
WAHO reaffirmed its commitment to supporting ECOWAS Member States in establishing robust ethical and regulatory systems and pledged support for the implementation of the newly adopted tools and the work of the new WANEC leadership.
According to the organisation, the measures are expected to improve regional preparedness and response to epidemics across West Africa.
