France’s Macron, African leaders push for vaccines for Africa after COVID-19 exposed inequalities
Associated PressJUN 13 2024
A recent study conducted in Africa has found that nearly 20% of medications on the continent may be substandard or fake.According to a recently published study, one-fifth of medicines in Africa could be substandard or fake and can result in failed treatments and preventable deaths.
Researchers from Bahir Dar University in Ethiopia reviewed 27 studies, and found that out of 7,508 medicine samples, 1,639 failed quality tests, indicating that the medications were substandard or falsified.Researchers from Ethiopia’s Bahir Dar University reviewed 27 studies and analyzed about 7,508 medicine samples. At least 1,639 samples failed quality tests, indicating that substandard and falsified medicines are prevalent in Africa.
According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, subpar and falsified medicines cause up to 500,000 deaths annually in sub-Saharan Africa. The WHO has identified antibiotics and anti-malarial drugs as the most commonly falsified medications.A UN report last year revealed that substandard and falsified antimalarial medicines and antibiotics have caused over 450K deaths annually in sub-Saharan Africa.
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