The UN Report Calls 500 Thousand People Died Died Of Fake Drugs In Sub-Saharan Africa Every Year

JAKARTA - False and substandard drugs have caused nearly 500,000 deaths annually in sub-Saharan Africa, the UN Office's claim for Drug and Crime Affairs (UNODC) in its report Thursday.

The lack of access to proper health care has ventured merchants, who mainly imported drugs to the Sahel region, after they were diverted from official supply chains from China, Belgium, France, and India.

The products were then moved through the area by car and truck, as published in the 'Trafficking in Medical Products in The Sahel' report.

Most of the deaths were linked to the treatment of fake antimalarials or below the standard, which killed 267,000 people in Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger.

Meanwhile, malaria itself killed 593,000 people in Africa overall in 2021 according to a World Health Organization (WHO) report, reported The National News on February 2.

A total of 169,271 other deaths have been associated with fake antibiotics and are below the standards used to treat severe pneumonia in children.

Furthermore, about 40 percent of the drugs found to be counterfeit were taken into regulated supply chains, meaning illegally produced drugs were successfully entered into the medical system of Sahel countries.

In addition to the risk of poorly-made counterfeiting and drugs, with the lightest risk of not functioning and the worst causing toxic contamination, the report also warns of legitimate drugs being used in an illegal manner that could lead to increased resistance to early-stage drugs such as antibiotics and antimalaria.

"Once the product (legage) is diverted from the supply chain, very little (supervision) of how the product is used," said Francois Patuel, head of UNODC Research and Awareness Unit.

"If you... ask for antibiotics in the market, you'll be able to buy them. Whether they're the right antibiotics to use, or should be used at all, isn't something that's controlled," Patuel continued.

"This contributes to bacterial resistance and antimalaria resistance," he said.

Ironically, the financial benefits of illicit trade are enjoyed by many people, including pharmaceutical company employees, law enforcement officers, and street vendors.

The agency said it was fighting the specter of drug trafficking. Throughout January 2017 to December 2021, international operations managed to confiscate more than 605 tons of medical products in West Africa.

In 2020, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) blamed the pandemic and the rise of online pharmacies as the cause of the explosion of counterfeit drugs.

"Sales of counterfeit and non-standard drugs are despicable crimes, and the discovery of fake medical supplies related to COVID-19 as the world works together to fight the pandemic, making this global challenge more acute and urgent," said OECD Secretary General Angel Gurria.

Citing Sputnik News, the researchers made a number of recommendations to prevent or at least reduce counterfeit drug trade. This includes strengthening cross-border cooperation, building efficient information sharing systems, and revising old laws on medical products traded to African countries.