THE Zambia Medicines Regulatory Authority (ZAMRA) has suspended certificate of registration of 40 registered retail pharmacies in Lusaka for breech of terms and conditions of the certificate of registration under which their licences was granted.
64 pharmacies were inspected and 40 where found operating without required qualified pharmacists and where ordered to close. In some instances prescription only medicines were dispensed without prescriptions.
The Authority would like to urge pharmacists working and managing pharmacies to be present at all times in order to enhance the levels of compliance in retail outlets.
We have noted with great concern the increase in the absence of pharmacists in most outlets resulting in non qualified personnel dispensing prescription only medicines to members of the public without prescriptions. In the case of antibiotics, this practice if left unchecked has potential to contribute to the increase in antimicrobial resistance.
We wish to sternly warn all registered retail pharmacies/chemists to adhere to good pharmaceutical practices as the Authority will not hesitate to suspend or revoke Certificate of Registration to all those found wanting.
Whata complience
Dud cabinet ministers comply including ck when cabinet was disolved
Why is pf making life virtually impossible for everyone
I think some of these institutions are impeded with saboteurs
Dear LT
This story is not true.
None of these pharmacies have been suspended. Take a drive through CBD Monday morning you will find them all open.
All the pharmacies were given an intent of suspension. They have been advised to rectify where they lack within 7 days. They have not been suspended.
Lets stop spreading rumours
I was buying my flu medicines and I happened to be a witness to one of these inspections and so-called suspensions. It really seemed like the authority was out to increase the number of “suspensions”. A very a bogus reason was given for suspending the pharmacy that I was purchasing my medicine from.
Its simply a competition between ZAMRA and HPCZ. Both trying to show their might.
Fat order… In a country where half the prescriptions are pieces of paper with no letter heads, no patient names, no doctors names and a barely visible date stamp, if at all… w
True. Any lay person can write a prescription of public clinic standards. Very poor prescribing practice in Zambia
Every Zambian has a right to life without let , interference nor hinderance from groups like the so called authority above . And subsequently everybody must have access to medicines ; pharmacist or no pharmacist.
Pharmacists can only be used where they are available.
The authority above is just a nuisance.
Perhaps schools should include dispensing in their sylubus , so that everone understands how to use medicines.
Those are the laws operating in first world countries. Its good to hear zambia has them except not been followed strictly. Deal with them and make sure they comply. They’re are the ones killing people. Abolish the sale of drugs on the tuntembas with immediate effect. I approve what youve started doing.
Ba Kalos please go to school. Stop commenting on things you don’t understand.
JOB WELL DONE
We heard of some Indian wholesale pharmacies which were selling fake drugs, where they closed down or is the case still on.going until we forget about it. The retail pharmacies are being ran by poor Zambians and as usual, law only apply on Zambians. Foreigners always get away with it
Nice move although long over due.This will control use of powerful drugs and lessen drug resistance in people.list drugs which need prescription and those that will be excluded,
The fake drugs industry is a billion dollar industry, India is the worlds No.1 manufacturer of fake drugs, Nigeria is the No.1 distributor of fake drugs in Africa and all the above are opening up pharmacies in Zambia, so it goes without saying the majority of Indian & Nigerian pharmacies will peddle fake drugs and condoms. Illicit drug dealing is very high in India, Lebanon, Nigeria and these are the nationals setting up unexplainable businesses in Zambia and we expect them not to deal in drugs, smuggle emeralds and precious stones, let us wake up as Zambians and come to the realization we have a lot of bad groups of foreigners, in Zambia – Indians, Lebanese, Nigerians, Senegalese, Somalians, and others, who are either engaging in illegal business or choking off the opportunity for…
No drugs in public hospitals. Dem evil Babylon men go die in Morningside clinic. Lesa(Jah) ni malyotola
It would have been better to publish names of these pharmacies…..oh what a minute….most of them are owned by their friends or the untouchable white skinned…….pa zed ni so che….no confidence in what they do and just …..full if cowards….
Well as much as this news is welcome, govt should simply permanently take them over. It is a pity that such important issues are left in the hands of the non compliant private people who are simply bent on making a profit. Govt should consider taking the leading role in pharmacy business because it is a critical part of the healthcare sector. There are just too much ntemba pharmacies around the country which is a very dangerous and unproductive scheme.
Govt take over what? Firstly, theres no medicines in government hospitals and clinics. And half of what is there in government hospitals and clinics gets stolen and resold to ntembas…
Indians have the monopoly on the pharmacy industry in Zambia. Unfortunately they are only in Zambia to make profit from the poor and not well educated. There is less than a handful of Zambian owned pharmacies. Zambians are pushed out of the market because of Indian corruption. The bribe officials for contracts e.g Mylan has won several government contracts through bribery and corruption. It was millions of dollars to the Zambia distributor of it’s ARV drugs!
I heard the Mylan(India) thieves. They supply ARV’s to Zambia and NGO’s. They(Mr Khan and his employees)entered the Zambian market in 2010. The thieves even got to meet the president!They were not able to set up a the company in Zambia and had to use a Zambian distributer (CHIKU). To date Mylan owns more than a million dollars to CHIKU. It has refused to pay the CHIKU estate the millions it owes. This has happened to many Zambian companies that work the these foreign thieves. They have no integrity. Mylan is a multi billion dollar company. Yet it exploits local Africa companied!
I qualified as a pharmacist 5 years ago. I have worked for some of these Indian owned pharmacies. They sell expired cheap drugs from Indian. I agree the have monopoly on the market. This s been gained by bribery of government official. I hope the younger generatios of Zambia will have the courage to reclaim the market and bring some integrity to the pharmacy industry on Zambia. I dream of a day when the majority of the pharmacy industry in Zambia is owned by Zambia pharmacy graduates!
The strength of any great nation lies in the depth of its indigenous middle class. Foreigners, with the help of govt, are monopolizing the ladder to climb the middle class. Where is the sense, in govt allowing & importing in Indians to sink boreholes in Zambia, at K15,000.00, when we have a lot of unemployed Zambians, a idle ZNS, cnt the govt set up Zambians and teach them the necessary skills, the water table in Zambia is shallow, only 30 meters. Small & medium scale pharamacitical businesses should be restricted to indigenous Zambians, retired Zambian nurses and doctors must be equiped with the business skills to run these business but the collusion of govt officials with unscrupulous foreigners is killing us!
90% of condoms sold in Zambia are fake:
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I dont know this Pharmacy industry but what I do know is, the Indians, Chinese and Whites are far better at business than us. A simple look at the market you’ll find majority of CBD is run by Indians. The Whites came in with Game stores, Shoprite etc and they surpassed the Indians too. Mind you, these chain stores also started from scratch, omce upon a time. Now we have the Chinese on the scene and they too will surpass our business potential. Lets admit it. Business is not really our game.
I completely disagree. The Indians are opportunists. The whites are exploiters. Chinese a hard workers and ethical in their business ventures in Zambia for the most part. Indian s are corrupt in way they contact business in Zambia. There are several capable business men in Zambia and African who can out perform the these Indian thieves. If only there was a Dangote in the pharmaceutical industry in Africa!
Peter You obviously missed the much publicised aqua savana story where the Chinese who could barely speak a word of English were busy unethically using Aqua Savana name to sell their water. Theres too many stories like that, but they do not get the same publicity. Very dodgy characters these