Kenya joins Ghana, Nigeria to introduce SMS-based system to fight counterfeit drugs
Kenya joins Ghana and Nigeria to introduce an anti-fake drug programme as the country’s telecommunication provider, Orange Kenya leads the way to launch Mpedigree, an SMS-based system to fight counterfeit drugs on Saturday.
The company will run the programme to fight counterfeit drugs in Kenya and Cameroon where up to 30 per cent of the drugs are potentially affected.
A statement issued and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Saturday by the company said the system would be rolled out in different healthcare centres all over the country from next week.
“Every drug serial number will have to be scanned to ensure it is legitimate before it is administered to any patient,” the statement said.
Mpedigree is a non-profit NGO based in Ghana that advocates for the development of strategies to fight counterfeiting.
It works with technology providers worldwide to bring relief to patients at risk of counterfeit medication in developing nations, where the World Health Organisation estimates that up to 30 per cent of drugs could lead to the horrid healthcare crises that fake drugs often unleash.
Prof. Anyang Nyong’o, Kenya’s Minister of Medical Services, said out of 174 drugs, one was a counterfeit, adding “We must be vigilant to fight the production of counterfeit enterprises using technology”.
The Chief Executive Officer of Orange Kenya, Mr Mickael Ghossein, said the launch of Mpedigree in Kenya, was part of an ongoing strategic move that would see Orange launch a number of e-solutions that were designed to respond to market needs and offer greater convenience to customers.
“At Orange, we are driven by the need for consistent innovation and as such we consistently review the dynamic needs of the market with a view of coming up with solutions to existing and anticipated challenges. We are therefore happy to be the first to launch this service that is suited to the medical sector,” he said.
The announcement to launch Mpedigree into the operations of Orange across the continent was made earlier in the year in Nairobi, following a partnership between the telecommunication services provider and the initiators of Mpedigree, and comes barely two months after the government launched its flag ship e-health strategy.
Mr Ghossein said, “With the most advanced telecommunications infrastructure that features the highest speed in data, we will continue to seek strategic and mutually beneficial partnerships with local and global solution providers, to offer maximum value to our customers.”
The statement said Orange Kenya was already working with Qualcomm, a key driver behind next-generation mobile networks, devices, applications and services, as well as with other partners in a project dubbed: “Wireless Reach” that is involved in the automation of the procurement of Anti-Retroviral Drugs at public clinics.
Source: GNA