The market value of the counterfeit drug globally is $ 4.4 billion
The Conference on “Pharmaceutical Fraud” warns against drugs mixed with internationally banned substances
The conference witnessed the participation of 609 experts and specialists in the pharmaceutical industry.
Photography: Ahmed Ardeti
Amin Al-Amiri: “Counterfeit medicines are among the 10 most counterfeit products in the world, and the first in terms of danger.”
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The Fourth International Emirates Conference on Combating Counterfeiting in Medical Products and Pharmaceutical Fraud has warned that counterfeit and fraudulent pharmaceutical products contain internationally banned substances that cause serious diseases, up to the point of stroke, heart attacks and kidney failure, and lead to death.
The conference sessions continued, yesterday, at the Expo 2020 Dubai Exhibition Center, in the presence of representatives of 10 international organizations and Arab, European and American bodies specialized in combating drug fraud, including the World Health Organization, the United Nations and Interpol.
The Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health for the Health Regulation Sector and Conference Chair, Dr. Amin Al-Amiri, said: “Counterfeit medicines are among the top 10 counterfeit products in the world, and they are the most dangerous and come first in terms of danger, as they affect health and cause dangerous complications for humans that reach an extent. Death".
He stated that counterfeit and counterfeit drugs have a significant negative impact on the economies of pharmaceutical companies and the economies of countries, as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development estimated the market value of counterfeit drugs at 4.4 billion dollars, and this number is expected to rise if governments and international organizations do not intervene to limit counterfeiting of drugs and production of drugs. adulterated.
He pointed to the high death rates due to counterfeit medicines in some African and Asian countries that do not implement strong anti-counterfeiting programs.
Dr. Amin Al-Amiri warned that drug fraud rebounded significantly globally last year, taking advantage of the emerging pandemic of the Corona virus, as a report was issued by the American Food and Drug Authority stating that drug counterfeiting operations increased at large rates starting in May 2020.
He pointed out that the European Interpol monitored an increase in drug fraud during the period between March and September 2020, and that 33 million pieces of counterfeit medical and personal protective equipment were confiscated, including masks and laboratory testing tools concerned with detecting infection with the "Covid-19" virus.
Participants in the conference from the World Health Organization and Interpol pointed out that drug fraud was targeting expensive medicines, such as drugs to treat cancer diseases, antibiotics, and medicines for chronic diseases, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, but the matter has developed and drug fraud has reached the most widely used drugs such as anti-aging drugs. Obesity, nutritional supplements and cosmetic drugs.
They mentioned that the world is suffering from a decline in the levels of reporting cases of drug fraud, as a report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development monitored that the rate of drug fraud reached 42% in Africa, and 6% in the Middle East countries.
They pointed out that the rate of reporting fraudulent medicines in East Asian countries is estimated at 2%, which indicates that the reporting of these dangerous pharmaceutical products is inaccurate, which raises the concern of international organizations.
Magdy Abdo, the regional director of health legislation and drug registration for the Servier drug industry, said that the two-day conference, which concluded yesterday, witnessed the participation of 609 experts and specialists in the drug industry from a large number of countries, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Egypt and France. And Germany, African and European countries, and the Americas, and more than 250 people interested in the drug industry followed it through electronic broadcasts in the UAE and abroad.
He added that the sessions included 21 lecturers, including experts who participated in the sessions via video communication techniques from outside the Emirates.
The UAE is one of the most anti-fraud countries in the world
The Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health for the Health Regulation Sector and Conference Chairman, Dr. Amin Al-Amiri, confirmed that the UAE is among the most distinguished countries in the world in combating drug fraud, due to its smart electronic programs that detect counterfeit medicine, in addition to the presence of programs that inquire about counterfeit and fraudulent medicine within a few minutes. .
He stated that the UAE is not only confronting counterfeit medicines on its territory, but also extends its efforts to contribute to supporting 42 countries around the world from the danger of these products, given that the UAE has a strategic position in importing and re-exporting medicine.
He pointed out that the Ministry of Health and Community Protection is making great efforts, in cooperation with the Ministry of Interior, the Federal Customs Authority and local customs departments, to control any fraudulent or counterfeit pharmaceutical products.
He announced that the Ministry of Health is cooperating on an ongoing basis with the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority in the UAE to block any unofficial websites that promote fraudulent or counterfeit medicines.
• Counterfeit and falsified medicines threaten stroke, heart attacks and kidney failure, and lead to death.
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