The General Administration of Pharmacy and Poisons in Gezira State in central Sudan, in cooperation with the security services in Madani, announced the seizure of large quantities of rare specialized drugs for cancer patients smuggled and not registered with the Ministry of Health worth more than EGP 200 mn.
The seizure of smuggled medicines comes at a time when Sudan’s hospitals are suffering from scarcity and difficulties in providing treatment due to the war, especially specialized and life-saving medicines.
Local and international organizations and bodies have previously warned of a possible humanitarian catastrophe due to the lack of medicines among those trapped in the areas of fighting between the army and the Rapid Support Forces since April 15.
According to the Sudan News Agency, on Tuesday, the director of the General Department of Pharmacy and Poisons in Gezira State, Dr. Habib Allah Al-Nour, praised the existing coordination between his administration, the security authorities and the judiciary.
He stressed that all measures stipulated in the Pharmacy and Poisons Law have been taken, and pointed out that the seized drugs will greatly alleviate the suffering of patients in search of treatment.
For his part, the judge of the Court of Appeal in Madani, resident judge Sadiq Othman, announced the facilitation of all procedures by the court, which contribute to the provision of medicines to patients, and warned that there is great coordination between the Ministry of Health and the court.
For his part, the Director General of the Ministry of Health in the state, Dr. Osama Abdul Rahman Ahmed Al-Faki, confirmed that his ministry will continue to combat and reduce the phenomenon of smuggled medicines.
He said that the seized drugs will be handed over to the Al Jazeera Center for the diagnosis and treatment of tumors in Madani after reviewing them and identifying their validity from specialists and distributing them to patients free of charge.
There have been reports of fears of increasing death tolls among people with chronic diseases in Sudan as a result of the scarcity of medicines, especially life-saving ones, and the inability to access them often as a result of the continuation of the war between the army and the Rapid Support for the seventh month.
Source: Al-Taghyeer
