At press time on Thursday, the Food and Drugs Board has issued a statement alerting the public of the presence of fake coartem malaria tablets in Kumasi.

The statement said the confirmatory tests on the fake products have shown that the fake Coartem tablets do not contain Artemether and Lumefantrine, the main active ingredients of the original and genuine Coartem tablet.

This means that most of the people in Kumasi and the Ashanti Region in general who had taken or are taking the fake tablet derived no benefit from it, since counterfeit medications can be hazardous to the point of being deadly. It might not be in Kumasi alone, definitely, the drugs passed through Accra to Kumasi.

The FDB directed all pharmacies, licensed chemical stores and healthcare facilities to recall the fake drugs from their shelves and dispensaries. Health care workers have also been directed to assist patients and customers to distinguish genuine coartem from the counterfeit. This newspaper wonders why the FDB thinks a mere press release can compel pharmacists and dispensaries to comply with this directive.

The FDB knows more than anyone that the drug counterfeit business is a multi-million dollar business globally, which is gaining roots in Ghana, the emerging gateway to everything.

It has been estimated that up to 15% of all sold drugs are fake, and in parts of Africa this figure exceeds 50% , which paints a grim picture of health delivery in Ghana and elsewhere in Africa. China is emerging as a source country of counterfeit drugs . India and other Asian countries are emerging as sources. As Ghana's trade with China and India is increasing each year, our authorities must keep a close eye on drugs from the two countries.

The production of substandard and fake drugs is a vast and underreported problem, particularly affecting poorer countries. It is an important cause of unnecessary morbidity, mortality, and loss of public confidence in medicines and health structures.

Malaria is a major development challenge for this country, with the government spending close to $700 million on malaria drugs each year. It can safely be discerned that much of the huge money spent on malaria ends up in the pockets of counterfeit drug producers from China and India, Ghana mostly imports malaria tablets from. An equally grim factor in the spread of counterfeit medications is the fact that some of the profits are used to fund terrorism.

Still, consumers need to take drugs when they are sick. It is not just enough saying consumers should not purchase counterfeit drugs our, regulatory bodies (the FDB, the Pharmacy Council, the CEPS etc ) must stand up to the task. The fundammental question remains; how do these fake drugs enter our market.

Aren't there any checks and balances. Packaging of these drugs is becoming more sophisticated each day; so the best defense for our authorities charged with promoting public safety is to ensure that all drugs imported are offered within normal procurement channels. Public safety is not about focusing on armed robbers, it has everything to do with stopping these hazardous drugs into the country.


Source: Public Agenda/Ghana