WHO Technical Report Series, No. 981 - World Health Organization

1. Introduction
The WHO Expert Committee on Specifications for Pharmaceutical Preparations
met in Amsterdam from 9 to 12 October 2012. Mr C. de Joncheere, Director of
the Department of Essential Medicines and Health Products (EMP) at the World
Health Organization (WHO) opened the meeting. On behalf of the Director-
General of WHO, Mr de Joncheere welcomed the participants to the forty-seventh
meeting of the Expert Committee. He reminded the members of the Expert
Committee of the importance of the Expert Committee system to the work of
WHO. The work of the Expert Committee on Specifications for Pharmaceutical
Preparations had provided considerable support, among others, to the WHO
Prequalification of Medicines Programme (PQP) to the extent that the work of
that Programme depended on the Expert Committee. He thanked the members
of the Committee for their service to the Organization and its Member States.
Dr L. Rägo, Coordinator of the Quality Assurance and Safety: Medicines
(QSM) team added his welcome to that of Mr de Joncheere. He reiterated the
value of the contributions to WHO's work made by experts around the world.
Such assistance helped WHO to keep abreast of changes in the environment. He
noted that for the third time it had been planned to hold an open session during
the meeting of the Expert Committee to respond to the interest in the quality of
medicines previously demonstrated by Member States during the World Health
Assembly. However, as no Member States had confirmed that they would attend,
the open session was not to be held on this occasion.
The meeting elected Professor S.A. Bawazir as Chairperson, Ms N.M.
Guerrero Rivas as Co-Chairperson, and Professor S. Jin and Ms C. Munyimba-
Yeta as Rapporteurs.
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