Many people cannot afford to buy the medicines they need even with instant loans, partly due to excessive mark-ups and inefficient systems.

Poor quality medicines can lead to worsening health, increased disease and even death. Up to a third of medicines in developing countries may be fakes.

Patients are often unable to get the medicines they need because of inavailability in pharmacies, ineffeciencies in the supply chain and weak health systems.

Promotion of medicines is a sensitive area because boundaries are blurred. When does promotion stop being about providing information and become misleading?

At the heart of MeTA is openness and disclosure of information to improve decision-making and efficiency. This also allows stakeholders to hold each other accountable.

Stakeholders participating in MeTA agree to work together on an equitable basis, recognise the validity of each others' interests and share information.

Medicine tablets