[South-South cooperation to strengthen the medicines control laboratories of the Caribbean community (CARICOM)].

Objective To describe the benefits obtained through South-South and triangular cooperation as a potential tool for strengthening medicine quality control in official medicines control laboratories (OMCLs) of the Region of the Americas. Methods Descriptive study of the project for strengthening drug quality control in OMCLs of the Caribbean community (CARICOM). Results Staff members of Argentina's National Administration for Drugs, Food, and Medical Technology (ANMAT) provided training to professionals from Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago. The project was funded by the Argentine Fund for South-South and Triangular Cooperation (FO.AR) and coordinated by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). Documents on good laboratory practice (GLP) developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Network for Drug Regulatory Harmonization (PANDRH) were reviewed, and the area of physical and chemical controls was strengthened, primarily for drugs to treat tuberculosis, malaria, and HIV/AIDS, all of which are strategically important to those countries. Conclusion This type of collaboration makes it possible to share experiences, optimize resources, harmonize procedures and regulations, and strengthen human resource capacities. In addition, it is a valuable tool for reducing asymmetries in various areas among the different countries of our Region.