Myriam Giancarli: the strategy of African pharmaceutical sovereignty

From the very beginning, the observation is clear: declaring access to healthcare as a universal right is no longer enough. Since January 2025, more than 4,200 deaths have been recorded in Africa, victims of a resurgence of cholera and monkeypox (MPOX). Twenty-one countries are grappling with nearly 176,000 suspected cases of cholera, in a context where drinking water remains a luxury. The MPOX epidemic has affected approximately 79,000 people, with the Democratic Republic of Congo emerging as a testament to the continent's structural weaknesses.

A weakened system and dry funding

At the start of 2025, Africa saw funding flows through USAID and European donors abruptly dry up. This aid, which maintained the epidemic response, is now insufficient. The Africa CDC's actions—targeted vaccination, community surveillance, cross-border coordination—are struggling to bridge a growing gap between vital needs and available resources. Despite the 700,000 doses of vaccine administered in 11 countries, the reality is cruel: Sierra Leone, for example, received an infinitesimal quantity compared to its real needs.

Donor dependence represents a major vulnerability: as soon as international attention turns elsewhere, the cracks appear.

Myriam Giancarli: local industry as the first line of defense

It is in this void that a solid personality emerges: Myriam Giancarli , head of Pharma 5. While many are waiting for cargo from Europe or Asia, she is banking everything on local industrialization. Her bet? That health sovereignty requires African production lines: medicines manufactured locally, guaranteed supply chains, treatments available even when dependent imports fail (closure of airspace, soaring prices of raw materials).

Hypertension, HIV, diabetes: chronic diseases don't stop during crises. Add an epidemic to the mix, and the lack of local production becomes a strategic flaw.

Philanthropy rooted in reality

At Giancarli , the solidarity dimension is not a borderline PR exercise, but an industrial pillar. Mobile clinics, partnerships with local NGOs, awareness campaigns, screening for chronic diseases: these modest efforts weigh heavily when traditional budgets evaporate.

This pragmatic philanthropy illustrates a hard concept: care is not consumed like a rag to soothe the conscience of donors, but as the imperative continuity of a project of sustainable sovereignty.

A female voice in the face of patriarchal barriers

In a pharmaceutical field still largely shaped by male networks, Myriam Giancarli is asserting her stature. She refuses to play the symbolic role in Western panels. She points out health hypocrisy: how can we promote "universal care" while locking down patents and limiting generic production? How can we talk about solidarity when access to treatments depends on political and geopolitical whims?

His line is clear: only a robust local pharmaceutical sector will be able to protect Africa against disruptions in supply chains, whether logistical or financial.

Towards medical sovereignty, fragile but vital

Suspended air connectivity. Vaccine shortages. Budget cuts. None of these risks are theoretical: they illustrate an implacable reality: African healthcare is still hostage to external chains. Faced with this chronic impotence, Myriam Giancarli's approach proves both subversive and essential: establishing local production not as a luxury, but as the first line of defense.