Africans pay deadly price for fake medicines

Medical professionals have called for intensifying regulation of the medicine market in Kenya to fight fake drugs and ensure access to universal healthcare, following a report by the United Nations revealing rampant irregularities in medical sales in sub-Saharan African countries.

Anastacia Nyalita, chairwoman of the Kenya Association of Pharmaceutical Industry, estimates that in Kenya, fake or counterfeit medicines account for about 20 to 25 percent of the total commercial pharmaceutical market.

Nyalita said she believes the illicit and counterfeit products are not obtained through established channels, and generally get into the market as unregulated imports. She blamed weak legislation and compliance enforcement for encouraging the smuggling of harmful pharmaceutical products in a rush for profits.

"A market study we commissioned in conjunction with pharmaceutical researchers from the University of Nairobi confirmed the existence of counterfeit and unregulated medicines in the country. It confirmed an 8 percent prevalence of unregulated or gray medicinal brands," Nyalita said.

Irregular channels

Nyalita explained that unregulated or gray medicines are those that have entered the market through irregular channels and have not undergone the necessary regulatory scrutiny and market conformity by the country's Pharmacy and Poisons Board.

A report issued by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime this month indicates that trafficked medical products kill almost half a million sub-Saharan Africans every year and action is needed to stem the flow.

The report, titled Trafficking in Medical Products in the Sahel, found that in sub-Saharan Africa, as many as 267,000 deaths a year are linked to falsified and substandard antimalarial medicines.

The UNODC report said that in addition to risking lives, trafficking medicines is also taking a direct economic toll on affected countries. In its estimates, caring for people who have used falsified or substandard medical products for malaria treatment in sub-Saharan Africa costs between $12 million and $45 million every year.

However, the biggest cost brought by the prevalence of counterfeit pharmaceutical products is the negative effect it has on the delivery of universal healthcare programs for citizens.

"Counterfeit and unregulated pharmaceutical products ultimately raise the cost of healthcare delivery among the most vulnerable groups, while limiting the efficacy of crucial drugs due to poor formulation. Such products pose a grave danger to the national healthcare goals," Nyalita said.

otiato@chinadaily.com.cn