Pfizer sponsors African anti-fake drug event

An international conference sponsored by global drug behemoth Pfizer has pooled experience from several countries on dealing with the issue of fake drugs in Africa. The aim of the Africa Anti-Counterfeiting Conference in Johannesburg, South Africa, was for representatives from sub-Saharan countries to discuss the threats that counterfeit medicines and unregistered generics pose for the safety of patients in this region.

Among the groups represented were the World Health Organization and the Pharmaceutical Security Institute which has 26 drugmakers among its members. Over the three-day event several workshops were organized for attendees from 10 sub-Saharan countries. As a result, the experiences of customs officials, drug regulators and other government agency representatives were able to be shared across the different countries. A spokeswoman for Pfizer told the Marketletter that this is a regular event organized by the firm, but that this was first of its kind in Africa.

Karl Lintel, Pfizer's regional director for Africa, said: "we are committed as a company to do all we can to keep fake medicines out of the marketplace so that they are not a threat to patient health. This conference is a demonstration of our commitment." While it is difficult to accurately describe the full scope of the counterfeiting problem, reported fake drug seizures are a useful baseline. Since 2004, authorities in several countries have seized more than 30 million counterfeit Pfizer tablets, and enough active pharmaceutical ingredients to manufacture over 50 million more (Marketletters passim).