By: Hadram Hydara
All pharmaceutical products from India will be subjected to mandatory inspections and testing starting from July 1, 2023, before being imported to the Gambia, the country’s Medicines Control Agency says.
MCA’s move came as a reaction to the tragic deaths of over 70 children linked to the Indian-made cough syrups.
The new regulations seek to “address issues related to substandard and falsified (counterfeit) medicines imported from India to The Gambia” and “for conformity to quality standards”, MCA indicates.
Following the death of the Gambian children linked to the Indian-made cough syrups, the World Health Organisation (WHO) released a report indicating the drugs had been contaminated with toxic chemicals found in car brake fluids and other industrial products.
A parliamentary committee in the Gambia also held Maiden Pharmaceuticals Ltd, the Indian company that made the contaminated cough syrups, responsible for the death of over 70 Gambian children.
Parents of the victims have been demanding justice and the country has since hired a US law firm for a possible legal action.
