Africa-Press – Uganda. Up to 2,400 doses of fake Covid-19 vaccines have been seized in South Africa, International Police (Interpol) said in a statement on Wednesday. The agency reported that three Chinese nationals and a Zambian were arrested over the matter. This follows a global alert issued by the agency warning that vaccines would be a prime target for criminal networks as countries struggle to secure the doses.
“Some 400 ampoules – equivalent to around 2,400 doses – containing the fake vaccine were found at a warehouse in Germiston, Gauteng, where officers also recovered a large quantity of fake 3 million masks and arrested three Chinese nationals and a Zambian national,” Interpol said.
The agency said in an investigation in China, police identified a network selling counterfeit Covid-19 vaccines, raided the manufacturing premises, resulting in the arrest of some 80 suspects, and seized more than 3,000 fake vaccines on the scene.Asked about strategies put in place to shield the country, the spokesperson for National Drug Authority (NDA), Mr Fredrick Ssekyana, said the issues will be addressed in a press conference today.
NDA regulates the importation and use of drugs and vaccines in the country. On October 13, 2018, NDA announced that about 196 suspected falsified 10ml units of the Hepatitis B Vaccine purportedly manufactured by the Serum Institute of India were confiscated by NDA and forwarded to its Quality Control Laboratory for further investigation. This happened in March 2018 during routine post-market surveillance visits at High Street Mbarara Municipality.
Earlier last year, Mr Denis Mwesigwa, the NDA director of inspectorate and enforcement, said vaccines will be allowed to be imported by pharmaceutical companies which have to first apply to NDA and the Ministry of Health for approval.
