Agriculture ministry moves to stamp out fake animal drugs

The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries has given all dealers in animal drugs, chemicals, acaricides and agrochemicals an ultimatum of 3 months to register with the ministry and their distributors in an effort to bring to an end the sale of adulterated farm inputs.

According Vicent Bamulangaki Ssempijja the minister for Agriculture, this is one of the measures aimed at reducing the number of dealers selling fakes products and making it easy to trace those that adulterate products.

A recent report released by Makerere University showed that 30% of imported animal drugs, chemicals, acaricides and agrochemicals reach the country when they have already adulterated by the importers and the 70% the products are adulterated while on the market by the agents and the different dealers with the aim of increasing the volume so that they get more money from sales.

Ssempjja said this is the reason the country is grappling with ticks that have for long become resistant to the acaricides.

“This has led to loss of income by both the farmers and government, the current tick resistance challenge is causing a total loss of Shs 3.8 trillion shilling annually," he said.

Hence forth government has decided to register all manufacturers of animal drugs, chemicals, acaricides and agrochemicals and will go a head to license all importers of animal drugs, chemicals, acaricides and agrochemicals

Its will also be the mandate of government to certify the distribution network of all importers and dealers in animal drugs, chemicals, acaricides and agrochemicals

Ssempijja said: “Only the authorised dealers will be given the right to distribute their products to farmers and farmers also shall be given the list of the authorised dealers from whom to buy animal drugs, chemicals, acaricides and agrochemicals."

A joint inspection and enforcement will be undertaken by Ministry of Agriculture, Agricultural Police, National Drug Authority, Uganda National Bureau of Standards in collaboration with line ministries and agencies of

government.