President Edgar Lungu says he will send Health Minister Joseph Kasonde and other experts to Uganda to learn more from the drug manufacturing factory in the East African nation’s capital, Kampala.
Speaking after touring Cipla Quality Chemical Industries (Cipla QCI) Limited that supplies an assortment of drugs including Anti-Retroviral (ARVs) to countries in East Africa, President Lungu said he was overwhelmed by the amount of investment in the factory and that he has decided to send a delegation to visit the plant from the Health Ministry.
President Lungu said he would for this reason be sending Dr Kasonde and other experts to the factory to facilitate further engagement with the company.
President Lungu said the factory was Africa’s pride adding that it was justifiable to support the firm.
He wondered why the drugs firm has not been marketed at international forums such as the African Union in order to attract African countries to import their drug supply from Uganda.
Earlier, Cipla QCI Executive Chairman Emmanuel Katongole said the factory was an example of an African solution to an African problem.
Mr Katongole said the setting up of the plant has improved the availability of drugs in Uganda which has translated in the reduction of Malaria and HIV/AIDS related deaths in Uganda.
He said it was sad that although Africa accounts for 80 percent of the global disease burden, the continent’s share in manufacturing medicines was only two percent.
Mr Katongole further expressed sadness that African countries were still buying medicines from outside the continent.
ka Lungu is currently in Uganda, isn’t he? So perhaps the heading of this article should say something like, “ka Lungu to beckon Kasonde and team to Uganda”
sorry LT, I didn’t mean to be a self appointed editor.
ha!
You’ll find ZWD more suited to your needs lol
ba Rebel,
next time ka Lungu comes to town here where I live, I’ll be sure to put in a good word for you so he can consider hiring you as his personal bodyguard because you seem eager to defend him even as he is parading with white socks all over Entebbe.
Anyway ba Rebel, on a lighter note, let’s hope ka Lungu is smart enough not to let that dictator Museveni talk him into clinging to power for 3 decades like he has done. That shameless mountain gorilla.
ha!
Concept good, but execution wrong. What Edgar should be doing is send private sector. Surely, there is is lot disease and the pharmaceutical industry would thrive. This why we need business minded people like HH and GBM to run the country. When one has no plan and vision, they fall for everything.
light moment on Friday: Those white socks hahahahaha!!
I dont think its necessary to send a delegation just to go and try to pretend to copy, because it will be a waste of money by the delegation. All you need to see is the idea behind and see whether the same can be replicated in Zambia.
YOU HAVE SAID IT KEEN. OUR GOVERNMENT SHOULD JUST COPY-AND-PASTE. THE COPY-AND-PASTE WOULD EVEN BE MORE EFFECTIVE IF ON PASTING IN ZAMBIA, THE CONCEPT IS ACCOMPANIED BY TECHNOCRATS FROM UGANDA TO MANAGE THE COPY-AND-PASTE. ZAMBIANS WILL GO THERE FOR ALLOWANCES, ONLY SO THAT THEY COME AND ACQUIRE EXTRA GIRL FRIENDS USING THE MONEY EARNED THROUGH FLIGHT AND NIGHT ALLOWANCES. SO, ARE WE SAYING THAT IN THE NEAR FUTURE ZAMBIA HIGHLY-PLACED PATIENTS MAY START BEING EJECTED TO UGANDA, NOW?
Typical of Zambian leaders.Why cant you replicate the investment into Zambia than sending a minister to start importing medicine from Uganda.cant you ever think of doing something within and for the country?Dont you wnt to stop going to SAfrica for health reasons.
That’s exactly the idea you clowns . The problem is you can’t even understand the simple English in the story that’s why you end up with wrong comments.
Arse licking bob, you pea size syphilis infected brain has a courage to call others clowns and yet, you are supporter of biggest uneducated and thieving corrupt bunch of clowns in the history of Zambia.
Please, do carry on looking for the crumbs to feed from the toilet floor.
But what do these health ministers go to college for? Smh
to memorise notes and regurgitate them to get As
How old was this guy when we had INTERCHEM manufacturing drugs in Zambia? The regulatory process in Zambia is rubbish. Do not copy, inovation is better!
@ The Kimbanguist I am sure you have many more examples were it not that you just want to refer to the drug factory in Uganda. The UNIP government under KK was really forward looking when it came to innovations. We had lots of industries running as, Livingstone motor assemblers, Rover Zambia, Dunlop, Mwinilunga Canning Factory, Mango juicing and pulping (Mongu), Own juice formulations i.e. Sunquick, Tip Top etc, amidst lots of challenges for a growing nation and economy, it seems we had better and smarter negotiators! Where did we start losing it? Instead of improving on what was on the ground for sustained growth and job creation everything crumbled and we seem to want to re-invent what already had existed!
Just approve Sondashi Formula. There’s a solution already!!!
Lungu is wondering why we don’t know about these companies??? how can we know when our representatives there, the embassy staff are on permanent holiday
Yes, no white socks for any man, please!