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PART I – NAME, FOUNDATION, HEADQUARTERS AND LEGAL STATUS
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Article 1. Name
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The Council of "Fédération Internationale Pharmaceutique / International Pharmaceutical Federation" (hereinafter referred to as FIP) has decided on 22 September 2022 to integrate the FIP Regional Pharmaceutical Forums as regional substructures of the federation in order to fulfil its mission and vision on a regional level.
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The name of the Forum shall be “FIP South East Asia Region (SEARPharm) Forum”, hereinafter called “the Forum”.
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Article 2. Foundation and FIP integration?
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The Forum was originally founded in June 2001 and it was integrated into the structure of FIP on 1 May 2024.
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Article 3. Headquarters
The formal headquarters of the Forum is the headquarters of FIP in The Hague.
Article 4. Legal status
The legal status of the Forum is that of FIP, of which it is a part.
Article 5. Definition
The Forum is a regional substructure of FIP.
As such, the mission, vision and objectives of the Forum are those of FIP, operating at a regional scale. For the purpose of the Forum, the region is the South East Asia Region, as defined by the World Health Organization, hereinafter called “the Region”.
In collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), FIP fostered the establishment of regional pharmaceutical forums to bring together national pharmaceutical organisations from each of the six geographical regions determined by the WHO: These forums are platforms for professional cooperation, with the aim of enabling the pharmacy profession to have a greater impact on improving health and the efficiency of health care systems through pharmacy services. They also organise professional and educational programs to promote good pharmacy practice and strengthen the pharmacy workforce in the countries and territories of their region. The Forum is a platform for professional cooperation across countries in the Region.
Article 9. Rules
FIP shall make such rules as are deemed necessary for the Forum to achieve its objectives and governance, setting forth procedures to carry out its activities and the Forum abides by these rules.
The Forums will have the autonomy to identify the priorities and needs of the Region in dialogue with their members and FIP and WHO / WHO region. Specific rules may need to be considered on a case-by-case basis. The statutes of the forums will need to be ratified by FIP Bureau, as happens with other FIP substructures.
While autonomous in terms of priorities and projects, the proposed rules should not be contradictory with any FIP rules and should be equitable across all forums. As such, forum rules must not contravene FIP rules or result in inequitable situations between different regions or Forums.
These rules shall have regard to the Forum’s structures and officers.
PART III – MEMBERS
Article 10. Membership categories
The Forum aggregates FIP’s members from the Region for collaboration at the regional level. As such, FIP membership is a prerequisite for membership in the Forum, and the Forum’s membership categories are aligned with those of FIP.
The Forum comprises of the following Member categories:
• Member Organisations
• Observer Organisations
• Allied Organisations
• Academic Institutional Members.
• Individual Members.
Any reference to members in these Statutes shall be deemed to include all categories of members unless indicated otherwise.
For a definition of the different membership categories, please refer to the FIP statutes.
10.1 Member Organisations (MOs)
Member Organisations of FIP (in good standing) based in the Region will automatically be considered member organisations of the Forum. The conditions of joining all FIP membership categories will be amended to include a statement that joining FIP they agree to be a member of the forum.
FIP accepts that pharmacists or pharmaceutical scientists and pharmacy educators be represented by more than one organisation in a given country, and that any of these organisations may be admitted into membership if they are a member of FIP. Member organisations have speaking and voting rights in a General Assembly of the Forum. The speaking rights of OOs, AOs, AIM and IMs are the same and they do not have voting rights.
10.2. Observer Organisations (OOs)
FIP Observer Organisations (in good standing) based in or operating within the Region, will automatically be considered Observer Organisations of the Forum. Observer organisations may participate in the Forum in the same terms as they participate in FIP.
10.3 Allied Organisations (AOs)
Allied Organisations of FIP (in good standing) based in or operating within the Region will automatically be considered Allied Organisations of the Forum. Allied Organisations may participate in the Forum in the same terms as they participate in FIP.
10.4 Academic Institutional Members (AIMs)
Academic institutional members (AIM) of FIP (in good standing) based in the Region will automatically be considered an AIM of the Forum. The Forum shall provide a regional platform for its AIM members. AIM members will participate in the Forum in the same terms as they participate in FIP.
10.5 Individual Members (IMs)
FIP IMs are not required to be a member of a national association that is a MO of FIP. Similarly, there does not need to be a MO from a country for a pharmacist or pharmaceutical scientist, or pharmacy educators to be an IM from that country. This is an important inclusive issue in nations without profession associations or membership bodies.
Individual Members of FIP, in good standing, who reside in any of the countries or territories in the Region will automatically be considered Individual Members of the Forum. Individual Members may participate in the Forum in the same terms as they participate in FIP.
Article 11. Admission of members
All FIP organisations that are members of FIP are automatically members of the respective regional forum.
Any members of the historical forum that are not FIP members, but fulfil FIP membership criteria, will be encouraged to be so and recruited accordingly.
Countries in all regions with pharmacy organisations unable to afford FIP membership or too small to have a globally engaged association tend to be the focus for WHO work and indeed form the focus for much of FIP support. Under the FIP-WHO MoU, FIP and the regional forums will seek to be active in these countries and territories based on needs and priorities.
Ideally low and low-middle income countries should have representation on the forums’ ExCos and FIP and the forums will seek to support this as far as is possible based on region, applying many of the ways FIP has to assist organisations and individuals from LICs.
Article 12. Member resignation, loss of membership and/or loss of membership benefits
Member Organisations that no longer fulfil the membership requirements of FIP, will no longer be members of FIP or the Forum. Following three years of non-payment of membership fees, FIP Member Organisations (automatically Forum members) will lose membership in the Forum.
Other membership categories that no longer fulfil the membership requirements of FIP, will no longer be members of FIP or the Forum. The cancellation is automatic, through the FIP Head office, after two consecutive years of non-payment. Cancellation is effective as of 30 April on the second year, as required by the FIP RoP BU-A3 Cancellation of memberships.
Article 13. Membership fees
Every member (organisational or individual) is subject to the payment of an annual FIP membership fee. No specific or additional fees will be charged to be members of the Forum.
Article 14. Rights and duties of Forum Member Organisations
The rights of the Forum Member Organisations are:
a) To participate in all Assemblies (ordinary and extra-ordinary).
b) To participate in the Forum’s activities.
c) To nominate candidates to be elected to the governing body of the Forum, the Executive Committee (ExCo).
d) To nominate candidates to participate in committees, commissions, working groups or delegations of the Forum.
e) To remain informed about the activities of the Forum.
The duties of the Forum Member Organisations are:
a) To comply with the provisions of these Statutes.
b) To comply with the provisions of the General Assembly and cooperate with the fulfilment of the purpose of the governing bodies.
c) To comply with any other provision that contributes to the improvement and strengthening of the Forum.
d) To guarantee an effective means of communication through the appointment of a person designated by the member for that purpose. To minimise communication problems, different contact points for specific priority areas of the Forum should be designated.
Article 15. Rights and duties of other Forum membership categories
The rights of the other Forum membership categories (except member organisations) are:
a) To participate in the ordinary and extraordinary Assemblies.
b) To participate in the Forum’s activities.
c) To remain informed about the activities of the Forum.
The duties of the other Forum membership categories (except member organisations) are to guarantee an effective means of communication through the indication of updated contact information.
PART IV – Governance structures
The governance structures of the Forum are:
1. The General Assembly
2. The Executive Committee
3. The Secretariat
Article 16. The General Assembly
16.1 Definition
The General Assembly is the supreme decision-making body of the Forum and shall be composed of all its members. Speaking and voting rights in the General Assembly are defined above for each membership category.
16.2 Functions of the General Assembly
The functions of the General Assembly shall be:
a. To define the policies of the Forum, in accordance with these Statutes and in line with FIP policies.
b. To elect the members of the Forum Executive Committee.
c. To consider and approve the Forum's Annual Work Plan and Budget presented by the Executive Committee.
d. To adopt the measures, it is deemed necessary for the efficient and effective running of the Forum when these are not defined in the Statutes.
e. To consider the reports and documents presented by the Executive Committee and the Secretariat.
f. To consider and recommend amendments to the Forum Statutes for ratification by the FIP Council.
g. To resolve within the limitations defined by FIP, any other matters not covered by these Statutes.
16.3 Meetings of the General Assembly
The meetings of the General Assembly of the Forum shall be ordinary or extraordinary. At least one of the Assemblies of the Forum shall take place during the FIP congress (either in-person, virtually, or hybrid).
Ordinary meetings shall be held once a year.
Assemblies shall be convened by the Executive Committee at least 90 continuous days in advance, at a date and place (or virtually) designated by the Executive Committee, and shall deal with at least the following points:
a. Report on the work of the Executive Committee.
b. Report on the work of the President and Vice President.
c. Consideration and approval of the Forum's Annual Work Plan.
d. Consideration and approval of the Forum's Budget.
e. Election of the members of the Executive Committee, in accordance with the provisions of these Statutes.
f. Designation of the venue of the next ordinary General Assembly (or virtual formal).
g. Any other matter related to the objectives of the Forum, after inclusion in the agenda and communicated to members 30 continuous days in advance, at the request of a Member, the Executive Committee or the Secretariat.
h. Any other business.
The General Assembly of the Forum may meet in extraordinary sessions as often as necessary, when convened by the Executive Committee or at the request of no less than 30% of the number of the Forum’s member organisations. Extraordinary sessions shall only deal with the agenda items for which the assembly was called for.
The extraordinary General Assembly shall be convened in writing, stating the place (or virtual/hybrid format), date and time of the meeting, as well as the agenda with the matters to be discussed. At least 45 continuous days must elapse between the summons and the day appointed for the General Assembly.
Each member organisation shall be responsible for all travel, accommodation, food and other expenses for its representative(s) to attend the General Assemblies of the Forum that are so convened.
The General Assemblies, both ordinary and extraordinary, shall be validly constituted when half plus one of the Members with voting rights are present either physically or through virtual means, and have been accredited in a reliable manner.
16.4 Voting process
The same system of voting used by the FIP Council shall apply to the General Assembly of the Forum. Voting shall normally be by show of hands or via (secret) paper ballots/online voting, whichever option is appropriate under the circumstances.
FIP will support virtual attendance and the voting requirements accordingly. A simple majority of the votes present (including virtual) at the Assembly and entitled to vote shall be required to pass a motion. For these purposes, it shall be understood that the representatives of the member organisations who have not accumulated more than two years of non-payment of the annual membership fees in FIP, have the right to vote. This will be reviewed in parallel to all voting issues at Council over time. To note, the President of the GA will be the Forum President at all times, other than when a sitting President is standing for re-election.
Resolutions of the General Assembly shall be passed by a simple majority of the members present and entitled to vote. A qualified majority, i.e. two thirds of the votes present, shall be necessary for the following:
a) Amendment of the statutes.
b) Dissolution of the Forum.
In addition to the powers set out above, the General Assembly shall be responsible for electing the Members of the Executive Committee individually. Voting for the election of the Executive Committee members shall be by secret ballot. In the event of a tied vote, the President of the General Assembly shall have the casting vote.
Article 17. The Forum Executive Committee
17.1 Definition
The Executive Committee (ExCo) is the governing organ of the Forum, charged with the leadership, organisation and management of its activities. It will be composed of the following members:
a. President
b. Vice President
c. Vice President & Treasurer
d. Secretary of Pharmaceutical Practice
e. Secretary of Pharmaceutical Education & Workforce Development
f. Secretary of Pharmaceutical Sciences
g. One ECP for each secretary can be invited, if appropriate, as observers. (3)
17.2 Election of the Forum Executive Committee members
Member Organisations and Forum ExCo members are entitled to nominate candidates to serve as Forum ExCo members; it is a requirement that multiple Member Organisations are represented on the Forum Executive Committee.
All members of the Executive Committee must become Individual Members of FIP (if they are not members already) and be members of one of the Forum’s member organisations and have their written endorsement.
Elected officers will serve for four years and may be re-elected once.
Elections will take place alternately: for the President and the Secretaries of Pharmaceutical Practice, and of Pharmaceutical Education & Workforce Development in one year, and for the Vice President, the Treasurer and the Secretary of Pharmaceutical Sciences two years later.
The structure of the Forum ExCos will be reviewed alongside any changes to wider FIP structures as and when changes occur and are voted upon at FIP Council.
17.3 Functions of the Forum Executive Committee
17.3.1. The functions of the Executive Committee are:
a. To implement the decisions of the Forum’s General Assembly
b. To carry out the administrative management of the Forum.
c. To establish the commissions, committees, working groups or delegations that seek to achieve the aims of the Forum.
d. To organise General Assemblies and other meetings of the Forum.
e. To prepare draft declarations in relation to the objectives of the Forum for consideration by the General Assembly.
f. To inform the General Assembly about new members or loss/cancellation of members. This provision does not apply to individual members.
g. To define the venue of the Extraordinary General Assemblies (or opt for a virtual format when appropriate).
h. To draw up a plan of activities and the proposed budget
i. To prepare an annual report and submit it to the General Assembly for consideration.
j. To disseminate information relevant to pharmaceutical practice, sciences, education and workforce development at regional and global levels.
k. To coordinate activities with the President [and Vice President, as appropriate].
Any other function that does not fall within the exclusive competence of the General Assembly, for example the Congress programme, Web site management, Scholarships etc. All such ways of working will be laid out in a ROP.
17.3.2. The functions of the Forum President are:
a. To represent the Forum in all relevant instances.
b. To convene the ordinary and extraordinary General Assemblies, after drawing up the corresponding agenda.
c. To chair the General Assemblies and the sessions of the Executive Committee.
d. To provide direction, propose initiatives and facilitate the activities carried out by the Executive Committee.
e. To promote the dissemination of the activities of the Forum, the recruitment of new members and the fulfilment of the decisions of the General Assemblies.
f. To present to the General Assembly an annual report on the actions of the Executive Committee.
g. To coordinate the management of the Forum with the Vice President(s).
h. To liaise and ensure coordination with the appropriate bodies and structures of FIP.
i. To present reports in the absence of those who are required to present them.
j. Other functions assigned to them by the General Assembly.
k. To attend meetings of the FIP Council, funded by the Forum.
l. To report to the FIP Bureau and the FIP Council on the activities of the Forum.
17.3.3. The functions of the Forum Vice-President(s) are:
a. To actively collaborate with the functions of the President.
b. In the absence or by delegation of the President, to represent the Forum in the appropriate instances.
c. To stand in for the temporary or permanent absence of the President.
d. Other functions assigned to them by the General Assembly.
e. To coordinate with the President of the Executive Committee the professional and administrative management of the Forum.
f. To implement, when appropriate, the agreements adopted by the Executive Committee and the General Assembly.
g. To keep appropriate communication with the Forum Member Organisations and with other members as appropriate.
h. To act as a clearing house for information.
i. To utilise the funds allocated to the Forums’ activities in accordance with the approved budget for the period in collaboration with the Treasurer.
j. To participate in the meetings of the Executive Committee and the General Assembly.
k. To prepare the minutes of the meetings of the Executive Committee and the General Assemblies.
l. Other functions that the General Assembly and the Executive Committee may assign to them.
17.3.4. The functions of the Forum Treasurer (or shared VP role) are:
a. To administer the goods and other assets of the Forum.
b. To keep an up-to-date inventory of the assets of the Forum.
c. To receive the final accounts and reports from the previous Treasurer and to review them.
d. To supervise the administration of project funds managed by the Secretariat.
e. To keep the rest of the Executive Committee informed of the receipts and disbursements of funds.
f. To prepare and present the annual balance sheet and the general budget for the following period to the General Assembly.
g. To co-ordinate financial activities with the appropriate bodies and the FIP Chief Executive Officer and/or Chief Operating Officer.
h. Other functions assigned to them by the General Assembly.
17.3.5. The functions of the Forum Secretaries of Pharmaceutical Practice, Pharmaceutical Education & Workforce Development, and Pharmaceutical Sciences are as follows:
a. To supervise the implementation and continuity of actions in the areas of Pharmacy Practice, Pharmaceutical Sciences or Pharmacy Education and Workforce Development, in coordination with the Vice President, in accordance with the approved work plan.
b. To ensure alignment, coordination and communication with the relevant structures and officers of FIP, namely the Professional Secretary, Scientific Secretary and Chair of FIP Education, Chair of the FIP Board of Pharmaceutical Practice, Board of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Director of the FIP Hub, Section/SIG Presidents, and all relevant members of the FIP Headquarters Team.
c. To ensure adequate communication with member organisations in order to guarantee their effective participation in the achievement of the goals, objectives of the Forum and the annual work plan approved by the General Assembly.
d. To develop and promote the dissemination of the activities of the Forum in their respective domain, as well as the documents and technical materials produced by the Forum.
e. To replace the President, Vice-President or Treasurer in their absence.
f. Other functions assigned to them by the General Assembly.
17.4. Meetings of the Forum Executive Committee
a. The Executive Committee shall meet as required by the President or by the majority of its members.
b. The Executive Committee will meet in person at least annually and will meet by electronic means as often as necessary. It will be for each ExCo to decide when this is to take place to allow flexibility and funding / financing will be based on the methods used by the FIP sections.
c. The Forum will receive up to € 20,000 annually, based on project submissions. The Forums will need to prepare an annual budget. FIP will work with budget codes and each Forum will receive a unique budget code. Any transaction will go through FIP HQ.
d. The President may invite any person whom they consider appropriate to the Forum Executive Committee meetings or a part thereof.
Article 18. Contingency plans [replacement or extension of ExCo (Art 17.1) positions]
If the Forum President is absent or unable to act, a Vice President will be temporarily charged with the performance of the duties of the President, until a replacement is confirmed by the General Assembly.
In this article “the absence or inability to act of the President” is understood to mean:
I) illness; or
II) inaccessibility; or
III) resignation; or
IV) death.
Article 19. Representation
The Forum shall be represented by their ExCo members or any individual designated by the Forum ExCo at FIP meetings and other structures such as BPP, BPS, FIPEd, Bureau as appropriate and by invitation.
Article 20. Secretariat
The administration of the Secretariat of the Forum can be supported by one of the member organisations in accordance with the General Assembly. This may be for an indefinite period of time or may rotate depending on the Member Organisations in the region. Such a Member Organisation shall undertake the responsibilities associated with Secretariat duties in accordance with the decisions and directives of the Forum. The Member Organisation supporting the Forum Secretariat may be offered a reduction of FIP membership fees.
The secretariat is currently based at S.B.D. INSTITUTE OF PHARMACY, No. 31, 32, 1st Cross, Hanumantha Nagar, Bengaluru – 560019.
PART V. Finances (funding and resources)
Article 21. Other sources of revenue
Funding and support for Forum activities and projects may be obtained from external sources. For the receipt of donations or the approval of sponsorship agreements, the external entity must comply with the requirements stipulated in the procedure to be issued by the Executive Committee for such purposes, in strict accordance with the guidelines established by FIP.
Article 22. Assets
The assets of the Forum shall consist of:
a) The movable and immovable property it acquires.
b) Funds generated by activities carried out by the Forum.
c) The cultural and scientific heritage.
d) Donations received.
Article 23. Budget
The budget for the implementation, development and evaluation of the Forum’s projects and activities shall be executed as approved by the General Assembly. In the event of an activity or project requiring urgent implementation that has not been considered and approved by the General Assembly, the authorisation of the Executive Committee shall be sufficient, but in no case shall the total amount authorised by the Executive Committee exceed 30% of the amount allocated to activities approved by the General Assembly.
PART VI – Amendments of the statutes and dissolution of the Regional Forum
Article 24. Amendments of the statutes
Any proposed modifications of these statutes must be sent to the Forum Vice President nine months before, and reported to the membership six months before the assembly of the Forum
at which they will be considered.
A two-thirds majority of the delegates present and voting at the meeting shall be required to effect any revision. The modification of the Statutes and the dissolution of the Forum shall require the agreement of an extraordinary General Assembly convened for this purpose.
Article 26. Dissolution of the Forum
The Forum shall be dissolved when:
a. The number of member organisations is less than three.
b. This is agreed by an extraordinary General Assembly convened for that purpose, in accordance with the provisions in these statutes and ratified by the FIP Council.
The assets available to the Forum at the date of dissolution will be transferred to FIP.