Fake HIV, pain and weight-loss drugs — Sahpra is fighting back

The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (Sahpra), which regulates all medicines and medical devices, says the availability of illicit medication in the country is increasing, with criminal syndicates targeting weight loss, painkiller and chronic medication.

To repel this practice, the regulator is planning a huge public education offensive to counter the prevalence of illicit medication that has taken root in the country, threatening the wellbeing of consumers.

“Judging by the reports we receive from consumers and seizures conducted by inspectors, we believe that the issue is widespread.

“The awareness campaign is a proactive measure to educate the public and reduce the risks associated with these products, especially those sold online and on various social media platforms by unregulated suppliers,” Sahpra spokesperson Rodgers Baloyi said.

“Counterfeiters often target widely used and sought-after health products, including weight-loss medicines, antibiotics, chronic disease medicines like HIV, and pain relief medication,” he said.

“Consumers should only obtain medicines from authorised suppliers and with a valid prescription where required.

“Counterfeit and unregistered health products are not evaluated by Sahpra for their safety, quality and efficacy; as a result, those may contain incorrect or harmful ingredients, fail to treat medical conditions, or cause serious adverse effects. Consumers should only purchase medicines from licensed suppliers.”

To this end, Sahpra, an entity of the national department of health, is planning to rope in consultants to drive messages in communities about the proliferation of illicit medication and medical devices, in what will be its biggest media blitz yet.

The tender that Sahpra issued requires service providers that will maximise national reach and audience engagement through national radio stations in all 11 official languages, prioritising high-listenership programmes to maximise audience reach and campaign impact.

The campaign will run for four months annually for three years, with the first month of each year dedicated to planning, according to the request for proposal.

“The overarching goal of the communication campaign is to increase public awareness and understanding of the risks associated with fake, falsified and substandard medicines; promote responsible medicine purchasing behaviours; and encourage the reporting of suspicious or illegitimate medical products,” the tender document reads.

The multimillion-rand information warfare planned by Sahpra comes as different regulators across government scramble to rein in the illicit economy that runs across several sectors of the economy.

Read: BIG READ: Regulators seem powerless against SA’s booming black market for weight loss jabs

The National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS), established to ensure that businesses produce, import and sell products or services that are not harmful to consumers and the environment, is also ramping up its efforts to “lock out” noncompliant products and encourage local manufacturing.

“The illicit/noncompliant products on average range between 10% and 15% of the fast-moving consumer goods market in South Africa. This signifies market failure and is linked to the reason for the existence of the NCRS,” the entity said in its annual performance plan tabled before parliament earlier this year.

“The NCRS estimates that R382bn worth of illicit/noncompliant products are traded annually within the NCRS regulatory space.”

South Africa is broadly grappling to rein in the illicit economy. The National Treasury estimates it gobbles up R700bn of GDP annually and causes about R100bn in losses to the fiscus.

The National Consumer Commission is also laying the groundwork to implement South Africa’s first track-and-trace system as part of a co-ordinated crackdown on illicit goods, particularly counterfeit medication and pharmaceuticals, tobacco, alcohol, food and consumer appliances.

Regulations to enable tracking and tracing will be issued under the Consumer Protection Act, particularly to enforce product labelling, trade descriptions and product recalls.

The focus of the tracking and tracing system will mainly be those products with the highest incidents of illicit trade, particularly tobacco, alcohol, pharmaceuticals, food and consumer appliances, which pose a serious risk to South African consumers and the economy, the commission has said.

Business Day