… senior government officials involved in the export
By IOMMIE CHIWALO
BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)-As Malawi has been losing millions of Kwachas in burning expired drugs including the HIV and AIDS’ life-prolonging Antiretroviral (ARVs) drugs, some traders have found ‘gold’ in the scenario and are even exporting to neighboring countries including South Africa, it has been learnt.
Initially, it was a woman named Catherine Nsamala who apart from buying broken plastic buckets also asked for empty ARV bottles that she could buy at an offer of MK1,000 per bottle.
This begs for an investigation that reveals that there are people who are consolidating expired ARVs and then exporting them for business.
One of the traders who refused to be named claimed that some senior government officials are involved in the business saying that all expiry date is a marketing ploy by drug manufacturers to keep their clients restocking medicine cabinets and make profits regularly.
He said the demand for the search for presumed expired ARVs started after a growing number of Malawians living in South Africa were finding it tough to access the life-prolonging drugs.
He disclosed that some senior government officials are involved in the sense that are facilitating travel arrangements for those in the business.
But Ministry of Health spokesperson Adrian Chikumbe has expressed ignorance on the matter saying it is still a government stand to burn expired drugs no matter the costs.
He said expired drugs, as a result of reduced efficacy, there is a slight risk of HIV drug resistance.
“Malawi is serious in the fight against HIV and Aids and there is no way we can be involved in malpractice of giving out people expired medicine,” he said.
However, the businessman we have spoken to, insisted that drug resistance is a small risk therefore taking the expired ARVs will be of more benefit than taking none.
The source based his responses on a research project by Havard Medical Centre at its food and drug administration which discovered that 90 percent of more than 100 drugs both prescription and over-the-counter were perfectly good to use even 15 years after the expiration date.
On whether the expiration date is indeed just a manufacturer’s vague estimate of when the product is at its ‘freshest’, still date testing for longer periods can slow the ability to bring new and improved formulations. For instance, ARVs regimes have been changing and it was upon research either based on side effects or just efficacy.
Recently some medical practitioners have been arrested for being found with drugs without permission, a thing which also indicates the existence of a market for drugs.
Malawi has been losing billions of Kwachas in drugs largely, according to government officials, due to uncoordinated donations.
In 2022, for example, the lives of people in Mzuzu were in danger due to careless disposal of some expired drugs and medical supplies.
However, the trader we are in touch with insists that what ought to be burnt are contaminated drugs not the presumed expired drugs since for at least a month and even more than that, after expiration, is not likely to be a problem and that a manufacturer can still guarantee the full potency and safety of the drug.