NAFDAC Director Heads Regional Fake Drug Task Force
A director with Nigeria's National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) was made the head of a regional task force to fight fake drugs.
Hashim Yusufu was appointed to the position by the 63rd meeting of the World Health Assembly, according to AllAfrica.com.
Yusufu said that Nigeria was leading Africa's fight against the scourge of counterfeit drugs, which he emphasized were a serious problem for the continent.
"The use of ineffective, poor quality medicines can result in therapeutic failure, exacerbation of disease and could lead to resistance to antimicrobials," he said.
Yusufu also said that the impact of fake drugs is large.
"Counterfeit medical products are a global public health problem causing deaths, disability and injury to adults and children, illegitimate distribution and rampant use of counterfeit medicines lead to loss of confidence in health systems, health professionals, pharmaceuticals manufacturers and distributors," he said.
Roger Bate of the American Enterprise Institute has extensively covered the world's counterfeit drug trade and estimates that at least 100,000 people are killed by fake drugs every year, reports The Economist.