In September 2020, the Access Observatory released its annual report, “Demonstrating Commitment to Impact Through Measurement and Reporting.” Designed and managed by Boston University, the Access Observatory is an independent reporting platform for private sector-led access programs. By sharing their program information and data with the Access Observatory, Access Accelerated member companies and partners demonstrate their commitment to continuous learning, rigorous measurement and transparency.
As explained in the preface by AXA Investment Managers’ Yo Takatsuki, this annual report provides an “in-depth analysis of the industry-led access to medicine programmes. It reveals the innovative practices undertaken by companies to meaningfully move the dial in low and middle-income countries. The analysis shows evidence of what works and what doesn’t.”
In 2019 alone, 17 new programs were registered in the Access Observatory, most of which were newly created:
- By the end of the year, 75 active access programs operating in 114 countries were registered in the Access Observatory.
- Cancer was the most common disease focus (63%), followed by diabetes (19%) and cardiovascular disease (16%).
- Kenya continues to have the greatest number of active programs with 28, following by India and Tanzania with 14 and South Africa with 13.
The 2020 report also highlights how Access Observatory’s standardized approach supports the identification of synergies, redundancies and gaps in investments for global access, and in turn, lays the groundwork for new multi-company collaborations. In addition, the report shares how several companies have significantly increased internal capacity to measure and report on their access programs and revised agreements with implementing partners to require collection and reporting of program data. Through the Access Observatory, Access Accelerated member companies and partners are able to put their commitment to transparency into practice while charting the course forward for more effective and sustainable programming.
“The achievements and opportunities highlighted by the third annual Access Observatory report are fundamental as Access Accelerated embarks on our fourth year and as the global community faces unprecedented public health challenges,” says Access Accelerated Director James Headen Pfitzer. “This measurement framework allows the private sector to quantitatively demonstrate the impact of our programs during a time where people living with NCDs face greater vulnerability than ever before. We thank our member companies and partners for their submissions to the Access Observatory and their ongoing commitment to transparency.”
Data submitted to the Access Observatory not only captures collective progress in advancing NCD prevention, treatment and care, but it is also now used by the Access to Medicines Foundation in determining their Index rankings.
For more information on the new report and milestones from the first three years of the Access Observatory, visit the Access Observatory website.