•Among the items seized included in the operation include antibiotics, analgesics, cough syrups and diagnostic devices.
•The operation by officials from the Pharmacy and Poisons Board conducted a joint operation within the Ports of Entry along Namanga, Loitoktok, Busia and Malaba borders
General cargo handlers such as passenger buses, trucks, vans and courier service providers have been warned against illegal transportation of pharmaceuticals across the borders.
This comes after several consignments of Health Products and Technologies valued at Sh2 million were seized in a joint operation targeting border points.
Among the items seized in the operation were antibiotics, analgesics, cough syrups and diagnostic devices.
Officials from the Pharmacy and Poisons Board conducted a joint operation along the ports of entry along Namanga, Loitoktok, Busia and Malaba borders with an aim to enforce Good Distribution Practices of Health Products and Technologies (HPTs).
Two people who were found with the consignments were arrested and arraigned.
The two have since been charged with being in possession of Part I poisons while not being an authorised seller of poisons contrary to the laws.
“They were also charged with importation of medicinal substances that is unfit for use in humans contrary to section 50a(1)(a) as read with section 51 of the Pharmacy and Poisons Act, Cap. 244 laws of Kenya,” deputy director inspectorate and enforcement at PPB Dr Dominic Kariuki said.
The individuals were also charged with importing poison without an import licence contrary to rule 3(1) of the Pharmacy and Poisons rules as read with section 51 of the Pharmacy and Poisons Act, Cap. 244 laws of Kenya.
“PPB wishes to notify all the stakeholders on the requirements for licensing of pharmaceutical transporters that is on the official PPB website,” Kariuki said.
“Any company transporting medicine as a parcel should ensure they have the documents of delivery showing the source and the recipient otherwise on interception the board inspectors shall assume the consignment is being trafficked by the transportation company and in that case they shall face prosecution.”
The PPB is the national medicines regulatory authority whose mandate is to protect the health of the public by regulating pharmacy and ensuring the quality, safety and efficacy of medical products and health technologies.
Kenya is among countries that have been battling illegal trade in pharmaceutical products, with the board putting measures in place to ensure the safety of consumers.
The board has stepped up the fight against substandard, falsely labelled and falsified drugs to protect consumers from the dangers posed. It has an elaborate drug registration system that ensures that only safe, quality and efficacious products are registered.
The drugs are analysed by laboratories to ensure they comply with the label claims. Currently, the agency randomly collects samples from all over the country and effective analysis is done at the National Quality Control Laboratory to test for quality, safety and efficacy.
A system reporting suspected poor-quality medicines and adverse drug reactions has also been established to monitor medicines.
The centres of trade for these illicit drugs are unregulated chemists. Poverty, which drives consumers to purchase the cheapest goods and services on offer, is said to be a major contributing factor as counterfeit drugs are relatively cheap.
The board has been conducing a series of crackdowns in the country to help weed out illegal pharmacies in the country, with an ongoing crackdown in Nairobi region.
So far at least 40 illegal pharmacy outlets have been shut and the owners arrested and arraigned.
“The other focus is now the premises that is not registered you find that a premise is manned by a professional so in essence if there is no professional who is registered to actually apply for the premises to be registered that means the premises will never get a license,” Julius Kaluai said.
Kaluai is the head Nairobi region at the PPB.
The World Health Organization requires governments to establish strong national medicine regulatory authorities with the capacity to exert effective market control through proper monitoring and surveillance.
According to WHO, one in 10 medical products is substandard or falsified and likely responsible for thousands of deaths globally. Substandard medicines are a threat to the growth of the manufacturing sector as their negative impacts on human health are profound.