The illicit drug is now a multi-billion pound business. These are drugs that have pass through regulatory procedures. There was a recent documentary on BBC about the matters. There just don't only target developing countries but even developed countries. It is really sickening.
Date: Wed, 10 Jun 2009 20:01:43 -0400
From: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Poison and illicit drugs in La-Guinea. Similar problems in Senegal, Gambia,
To: [log in to unmask]
If the African governments improves primary health care and implements healthy city and community panning measures, the illicit drug market20will gradually lose its allure. Besides the drugs are only placebo,sometmes deadly, but of very little to no curative value. Without this, and when you stock public health centers with drugs, thy will steal it all and sell them to private pharmacies wh then turn aroundand add a high markup to make them affordable to only a few. You're back o square one. Haruna.
-----Original Message-----
From: Haruna Darbo <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Sat, 6 Jun 2009 2:31 pm
Subject: Poison and illicit drugs in La-Guinea. Similar problems in Senegal, Gambia,
Bissau, Burkina Faso, and Mali. Haruna.
GUINEA: Black market medicines re-emerge
 Photo: Alexis Adele/IRIN  |
| Health officials warn that taking unregulated medicines can kill (file photo) |
The fight against counterfeit drugs was always going to be difficult given the severe shortage of medicines in public hospitals and health centres, Mohamed Lamine Yansané, the health and public hygiene ministry's chief of staff, told IRIN on 1 June.
Private pharmacies have medicines but they are unaffordable for many Guineans.
“The authorities are having a tough time fighting this because there is no alternative [for people],” he said. “We could destroy all the products being sold in the mar kets, but then where would people go for medicines?”
In March the junta arre sted several people for the alleged manufacture and sale of counterfeit medicines and prohibited sales outside pharmacies. Conakry residents say black market medicines were scarce for a brief period after the crackdown but have reappeared in recent weeks.
The persistence of the phenomenon underscores the urgency of supplying Guinea’s public health centres with essential medicines, the Health Ministry’s Yansané said.
At Niger market in Conakry’s Kaloum neighbourhood, Mariam Sylla told IRIN she had no choice but to turn to black market medicines. “Products in the pharmacies are too expensive; we prefer to buy in the informal market.”
Vendors, too, seem pleased the sales are thriving again.
“I started to sell again when I saw other people doing so in other markets like Madina [a main Conakry marketplace],” said a young vendor who requested anonymity. “This is how I feed my family.”
Asked whether he was worried about checks by the authorities, he said no.
The junta recently announced it would free up money to buy medicines to supply public health centres and some donors have expressed interest in helping, but to date nothing has materialised, Yansané told IRIN.
To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask]
View your Twitter and Flickr updates from one place – Learn more!