Fake Drugs Killing Over 100,000 Africans Annually
By Sharon Atieno African countries bear the biggest brunt of fake medicines, accounting for nearly three in 10 medicines circulating the market. As a result, more than 100,000 Africans are losing their lives, a new report reveals. According to the white paper titled “Securing the Medicine Distribution Network in Africa,” majority of these medicines include antimalarials, antibiotics, painkillers (particularly opioids), HIV antiretrovirals and genitourinary medicines. Anti-inflammatories and blood-derived products are also affected. A 2023 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) report on trafficking in medical products in the Sahel found that between 72,000 and 169,000 children die each year from pneumonia treated with subpar or fake antibiotics. Worse still, of the one million annual deaths caused by malaria, 200,000 could be avoided if patients were treated with genuine medicines, according to a 2018 Le Figaro report. The white paper...