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State media quoted Minister of Health David Parirenyatwa on Monday, appealing to people living with HIV/Aids to buy their medicines from registered pharmacies, clinics and hospitals only.
"These fake drugs increase chances of one becoming resistant to treatment and it becomes even more expensive for that person to remain on treatment," he was quoted as saying by the official Herald newspaper, which said that the "prohibitive" cost of antiretroviral drugs at private pharmacies had fuelled the illegal market.
Useless fakes
State radio said that the illegal medications were either
adulterated with other substances or useless fakes.
About 50 000 HIV-infected patients are receiving free medication from government hospitals in a nation where an estimated 3 000 people die per week from Aids-related conditions. The Herald said 300 000 more are in urgent need of treatment.
Since a government edict in June to slash prices of all goods and services by about half, pharmacies say many medicines have been scarce.
The price cuts were ordered in an effort to tame the world's highest official inflation of 7 634 percent. Independent estimates put real inflation closer to 25 000 percent and the International Monetary Fund forecasts it reaching 100 000 percent by the end of the year.
Lack of raw material
Local manufacturers of HIV/Aids drugs have failed to obtain enough
imported raw materials, which must be paid for in scarce hard currency.
The local generic drug costs about 5 million Zimbabwe dollars for a month's supply, far out of the reach of most impoverished Zimbabweans.
A teacher in a top government high school earns about 3 million Zimbabwe dollars a month. Where formal unemployment is 80 percent, an unskilled general hand earns half that amount.
HIV/Aids support groups say patients receiving antiretroviral treatment live in constant fear of not being able to find or pay for their monthly medication. Imported drugs cost up to double the local makes.
Interruptions in treatment along with poor nutrition quickly render sufferers vulnerable to tuberculosis and other often fatal infections, according to support groups.
Most basic foods have disappeared from the shelves since the government's prices edict. The corn meal staple, meat, bread, milk, sugar, eggs and even soap and tea fetch ten times the government's fixed price if found on the illegal black market.
Shortages worsen
Bread shortages worsened on Monday across the country after the two
main bakery chains said they were down to their last emergency reserves
of flour.
One main Harare baking factory sent home hundreds of workers on indefinite leave on Friday.
The government has raised its price freeze across the board upward by 20 percent, but businesses say they are still being told to sell goods at below production costs. – (Sapa-AP)
Read more:
HIV/Aids Centre
September 2007
