• Sub-Saharan Africa spends just 0.02% of GDP on health R&D
• Underinvestment limits innovation and sustains reliance on imports
• Generics remain the dominant strategy for local manufacturers

Low levels of investment in health research and development (R&D) across sub-Saharan Africa are expected to force local pharmaceutical companies to focus on generic drug production rather than innovation. This trend holds back the region’s ambitions for pharmaceutical independence, according to a report published in mid-March 2026 by Fitch Solutions.

Titled “Limited R&D Funding Will Pose Headwinds To Sub-Saharan Africa's Pharmaceutical Sovereignty Ambitions”, the report notes that health-related R&D spending in sub-Saharan Africa averages just 0.02% of GDP, compared with 0.08% in Europe and 0.04% in North America. Even in leading countries in the region, such as Kenya (0.19%) and South Africa (0.13%), spending remains only a small fraction of what is allocated to health R&D in developed economies.

In absolute terms, Kenya’s $52.4 million and South Africa’s $466 million in R&D investment remain insufficient to support the clinical trial infrastructure and research institutions required for the discovery and development of new drugs. This underinvestment reinforces the region’s dependence on imports of essential medicines. Markets such as Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana continue to face persistent trade deficits in pharmaceuticals, with negative balances of $500 million, $950 million, and $410 million respectively in 2024.

Insufficient investment to build meaningful pharmaceutical innovation capacity also leaves the region exposed to supply chain disruptions and price pressures. Fitch Solutions does not expect countries to significantly increase health R&D spending in the short to medium term, given competing budget priorities, particularly infrastructure development.

As a result, pharmaceutical manufacturers operating in sub-Saharan Africa are likely to continue prioritizing generic drug production rather than developing innovative treatments tailored to the region’s specific disease burden.

A Path Toward Generic Drug Self-Sufficiency

Generic drug production remains the most commercially viable option for manufacturers in sub-Saharan Africa. Market fundamentals strongly favor this approach, as demand for generics is high and they require significantly lower capital investment than the development of original drugs. In addition, generics typically face fewer regulatory hurdles for market approval.

The report also emphasizes that pharmaceutical independence in sub-Saharan Africa will be achieved gradually over the long term, with realistic short-term milestones, including self-sufficiency in the production of generic medicines and essential vaccines, alongside the strengthening of clinical trial capacity.

The African pharmaceutical industry is expected to move progressively from simple generics to more complex generics, then to biosimilars—highly similar versions of biologic drugs—and eventually to innovative original medicines. This phased approach is expected to lay the groundwork for more ambitious sovereignty goals as economies grow and fiscal capacity expands.

Encouraging developments are already supporting this trajectory, particularly the expansion of vaccine manufacturing capacity following the Covid-19 pandemic and progress in regulatory harmonization through the launch of the African Medicines Agency (AMA), which is reducing barriers to intra-African pharmaceutical trade.

In addition, countries such as South Africa and Kenya benefit from existing research infrastructure, well-established pharmaceutical sectors, and a skilled workforce, providing a foundation for gradually strengthening capabilities.

Walid Kéfi