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The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated the Global Harmonisation Centre (GHC) in the Republic of Korea as a WHO collaborating centre for health products regulatory system strengthening and training.
Hosted by the National Institute of Food and Drug Safety Evaluation (NIFDS) under the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS), the centre will help expand global regulatory capacity by supporting countries in building the expertise needed to ensure access to safe, effective and quality-assured health products.
Effective regulatory systems are fundamental to protecting public health and advancing universal health coverage, yet around 70% of WHO Member States still lack well-functioning regulatory systems. Shortages of skilled regulatory professionals remain a critical challenge, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.
At the same time, rapid scientific and technological innovation, increasingly globalized supply chains and growing demands on regulatory authorities are making continuous workforce development more important than ever.
The new collaborating centre will help WHO address these challenges by expanding access to structured, competency-based regulatory training and strengthening the regulatory workforce for medicines and vaccines across countries.
The GHC operates under MFDS, a WHO-Listed Authority, reflecting the Republic of Korea’s internationally recognized regulatory system and its leadership in regulatory excellence.
