The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) in the Volta Region has disposed of confiscated counterfeit pharmaceutical products valued at GH₵42 million in a crackdown on illicit drug trade.
The destroyed products included aphrodisiacs, emergency contraceptives, body enhancement drugs, antibiotics, and processed food items.
According to the FDA, the bulk of the contraband was intercepted at the Ghana-Togo border in Akanu, where smugglers attempted to illegally bring them into the country. Additional fake medicines were seized during routine market surveillance and enforcement operations across the Volta and Oti regions.
The items were first shredded and disinfected at the Jopong Group of Company’s Medical Waste Treatment Facility in Akrofu before being transported to designated dumping sites for burning.
Volta Regional Director of the FDA, Gordon Akurugu, emphasized that pharmaceutical products must only be imported through approved entry points such as the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) or the Tema Port—not inland borders.
“We also have to put on record that pharmaceutical products are not supposed to move through the inland borders and that is why such products coming into the country, especially from Nigeria, are not allowed in. If you want to import drugs into the country, then it has to be KIA or Tema ports,” he explained.
He further cautioned that anyone caught smuggling drugs through land borders will face arrest, with the contraband being seized.
Mr. Akurugu urged Ghanaians to purchase medicines only from approved pharmacies, over-the-counter chemical stores, and hospitals to avoid exposure to counterfeit drugs.
“We want to take this opportunity to caution consumers. You see that there is a counterfeited Procold, Postino 2, and you can see a lot of aphrodisiacs. These are products that they bring in to deceive us. You may take them today thinking it will work for you, but I tell you it will have other health implications,” he warned.
He assured the public that the FDA remains vigilant against smuggling activities, while also advising commercial drivers not to assist in illegal transportation of pharmaceutical products.
The FDA has encouraged its regional offices to engage medical waste treatment facilities when disposing of confiscated drugs to protect the environment.
Ho Municipal Environmental Health Officer, Rev. Lawrence Senya, reinforced the importance of proper disposal practices to safeguard public health.
“There are sometimes at places where these drugs are not properly disposed you will find people picking and sending them back into the community,” he noted.
Rev. Senya called on the public to report individuals engaging in unauthorized drug sales, particularly those selling medicines informally in streets or lorry parks.
“We want to use the opportunity to educate the public that anytime you see somebody who is selling drugs, holding a bag in the streets or lorry parks, you can be certain that those drugs have not gone through the appropriate quarters. That is why they are selling them in that manner. We should not purchase such drugs,” he stressed.
Source: Fred Quame Asare
