The Liberia Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Authority (LMHRA) has announced the safe disposal of 641.88 tons of expired health products from major facilities across 10 counties, including the John F. Kennedy Medical Center, Redemption Hospital, and the Central Medicines Store.
The haul, equivalent to 65 truckloads, marks a milestone in LMHRA’s nationwide clean-up campaign, with five southeastern counties still pending.
Dr. Luke Bawo, LMHRA’s Director-General, disclosed the achievement during a Ministry of Information press briefing, noting that the exercise is part of broader reforms to strengthen regulatory oversight and public health safety.
“Our first accomplishment was to remove and safely dispose of all expired health products from 10 counties… In total, 641.88 tons were removed,” Dr. Bawo said.
Accreditation Drive
LMHRA is also advancing efforts to secure World Health Organization Maturity Level-3 status and ISO 17025 certification for its laboratory. The newly established Quality Control Unit is working to meet international benchmarks, positioning Liberia as a credible hub for product testing and verification.
A Public-Private Partnership agreement with Quality Management Solutions (QMS) has been approved to modernize the LMHRA Quality Control Laboratory in Careysburg. The collaboration is expected to enhance national capacity, improve quality assurance, and accelerate the ISO certification process.
New Waste Facility
By December 31, LMHRA will inaugurate a state-of-the-art healthcare waste disposal facility in Koko Town, Lower Margibi County. Funded by the Global Fund through Plan-Liberia, the five-acre site will feature a self-loading incinerator, warehouses, generators, bottle crushers, monitoring wells, decantation pits, and administrative offices.
The Ministry of Health has pledged to extend electricity to the facility, while the Ministry of Public Works is grading the six-mile access road. Dr. Bawo praised the intergovernmental support, calling the project “a major step toward safe and environmentally sound disposal of expired pharmaceuticals, illicit drugs, and pathological waste.”
