You could be spending money on medicine and still not getting better ,not necessarily because your illness is stronger, but because a major crackdown has uncovered stolen, expired and unregistered medical supplies being sold in Kenyan pharmacies.
A joint operation targeting pharmaceutical premises across Kenya has uncovered thousands of medical commodities suspected to have been illegally distributed, raising fresh concerns about the safety of medicines reaching patients.
The operation, led by the United States Agency for International Development Office of Inspector General (USAID OIG), targeted 18 pharmaceutical premises across the country.
Two people were arrested following the operation, while another 11 individuals were directed to report for further investigations or possible court proceedings.
At least four pharmacies were also closed or sealed over alleged illegal activities and regulatory violations.
Investigators seized thousands of medical commodities during the operation, including more than 2,000 co-trimoxazole antibiotic tablets that were traced to the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA).
Other products recovered included expired and defective medicines, as well as pharmaceutical products that were allegedly not properly registered.
Diagnostic test strips that were allegedly improperly distributed were also recovered during the operation.
The discoveries have raised concerns about the integrity of Kenya’s pharmaceutical supply chain and how medical products move from authorised suppliers into private pharmacies.
While not every case of medicine failing to work is linked to unsafe or expired drugs, the discoveries have renewed questions about the integrity of Kenya’s pharmaceutical supply chain.
