As part of our mission to make essential medicines accessible to everyone, everywhere, the Access to Medicine Foundation engages with investors in the global health space to share our evidence-based insights and provide a platform for collective engagement.
Improving availability and access to medicine, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), is a shared responsibility in the global health community, with pharmaceutical companies playing a central role. As such, the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises ask investors in the sector to act with due diligence and mitigate salient human rights risks linked to the pharmaceutical companies in their portfolios. Â
Improving access is not only key for compliance with international human rights laws, but essential for long-term sector growth of the sector. By equipping investors with evidence-based tools to assess company performance, the Access to Medicine Foundation supports investors in achieving sustainable returns in global healthcare markets.Â
Empowering investors with evidence-based insightsÂ
The Foundation’s reports, which span a wide range of healthcare sectors, serve as changemaking tools for pharmaceutical companies to improve access to their products in LMICs.  Â
In assessing company performance across key areas, such as governance of access, product delivery, licensing and R&D, we pinpoint specific, actionable opportunities to improve access in LMIC markets. We also highlight examples of industry best practice that can be replicated by other companies. These insights enable investors to engage companies more effectively and advance access while reducing regulatory risk, creating more resilient business models and building their reputations. Â
Beyond benchmarking companies, the Access to Medicine Foundation also serves as a platform for collaboration, encouraging investors to align on expectations, share evidence and adopt a common, independent analytical framework. Collective action strengthens investor influence, pools resources and drives more consistent signals to companies across markets.Â
To date, over 145 investors managing assets of more than USD 22 trillion have committed to use our data and insights to inform stewardship, engagement and escalation strategies.Â
“We see the Access to Medicine Foundation's impact very broadly across the healthcare sector. Its research give us a dialogue to talk to companies about and it gives us that agenda for companies to consider broadening access to their services.”
Stephanie Niven
Portfolio Manager, Ninety One
Becoming a signatory
By becoming a signatory to the Access to Medicine Foundation investor group, your firm joins a global community of institutional investors using independent, evidence-based analysis to assess and engage pharmaceutical companies on access to medicine in low- and middle-income countries.Â
Who can become a signatory?Â
All institutional investors that:Â
Recognise access to medicine as a financially material issue for the pharmaceutical sectorÂ
Use or intend to use stewardship and engagement as part of their investment approachÂ
Value collaborative, evidence-based engagement grounded in independent analysesÂ
Signatories commit to reviewing and taking analyses generated from the Access to Medicine Index into account with their portfolio companies, when appropriate. See the Investor Statement for a full overview. Lead investors commit to conducting the engagement process for a specific company, and sharing the outcomes with the Foundation, while supporting investors may offer their expertise and bandwidth by providing input for engagements.Â
Direct access to our engagement specialists and analysts who track company activities on a daily basis.Â
Collective engagement
The opportunity to collaborate with peers using a shared analytical framework and track progress collectively.Â
Efficiency and scale
Pooled resources and shared evidence that reduce duplication and increase the effectiveness of investor efforts.Â
Credibility and accountability
Association with a globally recognised, independent foundation focused on access to medicine in low- and middle-income countries.Â
Possibility to be consulted in methodology developments
The Foundation is committed to providing its data and analyses free of charge to all stakeholder groups, including investors. There is no membership fee for signatories.Â
Investors are strongest when they pool their influence. By joining the Foundation's collaborative initiatives, investors can jointly steer investee companies to do better. For instance, initiatives such as Investor Action on Antimicrobial Resistance (IAAMR), galvanise institutional investors' efforts to address the global threat of drug-resistance.
Discover our diverse research areas, encompassing healthcare access gaps related to more than 80 diseases and conditions, including antimicrobial resistance, diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular diseases and communicable diseases, below.
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