ADDIS ABABA – Ethiopian Food, Medicine and Health care Administration and Control Authority (EFMHACA) said it has frozen imported drugs, cosmetics and medical equipments worth more than 900 thousand birr due to low quality as they couldn’t meet Ethiopia’s standards and deformation during importation.
Through adopting strategic inspection mechanisms, EFMHACA has also banned some 4950 kg of food commodities and 686.8 liters of oil that were imported and about to be distributed to Ethiopian market as their expiry date has passed and they should no longer be used.
Following a post-market surveillance, the authority has also banned three unauthorized aphrodisiac drugs from the Ethiopian market, said Samson Abraham, Authority Public Relations and Communication Director told The Ethiopian Herald. In the first quarter of the current budget year, Ethiopia has imported more than 3.8 million birr worth of drugs, medical equipments, laboratory reagents and other materials.
EFMHACA has also been controlling and monitoring the standard of local manufacturers. “The authority has been conducting random and deliberate inspection on drug and food manufacturing industries to keep the quality of their products. Gezahegn Endale, Medical Facility Inspection Directorate Director said the Authority has put in place effective instruments of inspection across the country which has been helping it to make sure the authenticity of drugs distributed in the Ethiopian market.
Particularly, the Inspection Directorate is conducting strong inspection, post-market survey, legal document evaluation and laboratory taste on imported items. Additionally, it is also necessary to organize campaigns to raise awareness so that the public buys drugs from authorized drug shops only. “Drug manufacturers, shops and pharmacies need to also set up their own monitoring mechanisms,” he said.
Currently, there are 13 drug manufactures in Ethiopia, but according to the authority, only few are able to meet all standard requirements. The Authority has identified gaps and flaws and forwarded them to drug manufacturers so that they take corrective measures on their manufacturing practices by the start of January.
Otherwise, the authority will be forced to close those manufacturers that compromise quality and standard. Counterfeit and expired medicines have for long been a major challenge in Ethiopian health sector.
The Ethiopian Herald, January 10/2019
BY MULATU BELACHEW
