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Pharmaceutical distributors have urged the National Assembly to reject a trade agreement Kenya signed with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), warning it could expose the country to unsafe drugs and weaken local health oversight.
In a statement dated November 18, the Kenya Pharmaceutical Distributors Association (KPDA) said the deal, tabled in the House on Tuesday, contains clauses that unscrupulous importers could exploit to bypass the Pharmacy and Poisons Board.
“KPDA opposes the Drug Distribution Model adopted by the Trade agreement between Kenya and the UAE, citing that the Health sovereignty of the country will be under jeopardy should the Government-to-Government agreement, also known as Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, be ratified by the National Assembly,” said KPDA Chairperson Kamamia Wa Murichu.
The association said the deal undermines World Health Organization regulations on cross-border pharmaceutical trade and could flood the local market with substandard drugs while reducing government tax revenue.
“The country stands a chance of not acquiring a WHO audit benchmarking tool known as Maturity Level 3, which is a surety of a stringent drug regulatory status but also a possible slip back from the current Maturity Level 2 system to a Maturity Level 1 status; a status assigned to war-torn countries with no systems to talk about,” noted Kamamia.
KPDA also warned the deal could threaten Kenya’s bid to host the Africa Drug Authority headquarters and a WHO-backed vaccine manufacturing facility in Nairobi, and slow progress in local drug production.
“Our local drug manufacturing industry grew by 4 times from 4 per cent to 16 per cent in the last one year, leveraging the achievement of the Maturity Level 3 status by the drug regulator,” remarked Kamamia.
President William Ruto and His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan signed the agreement on January 14 to eliminate barriers to trade, simplify customs procedures, and promote industrialisation and regional value chains.
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The deal aims to expand trade between Kenya and the UAE, currently valued at Sh445 billion, marking the first such agreement between the UAE and a mainland African country.
The UAE also supplies Kenya with petroleum, machinery, and chemicals.
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