Coronavirus: Government, alcohol companies strike deal to manufacture affordable sanitizers

Additional reporting by Victoria Bagaaya 

Government has struck a deal with alcohol and spirit companies that will see the latter manufacturer affordable but good quality sanitizers that will help in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

On Tuesday, the State Minister for Finance in charge of Privatisation Evelyn Anite met with the companies and the deal was agreed.

“I thank the Uganda Manufacturers Association and the spirit manufacturers who agreed to step in and combat the hand sanitizer shortage by using the 7.3 million litres of alcohol in their facilities to make available, affordable and quality sanitizers for the protection of Uganda against coronavirus,”Anite said.

She said that the companies accepted to manufacture affordable but good quality sanitizers in order to deal with the current shortage caused by the pandemic.

Anite noted that in return, government accepted to give VAT and excise duty waivers to the manufacturers.

“During the meeting with the spirit manufacturers, Uganda National Bureau of Standards and National Drug Authority pledged to fast track the registration of quality hand sanitizers, but also assured of increased surveillance across the country to ensure fake sanitizers are not released onto the market.”

Following the coronavirus outbreak, among the measures put in place is washing hands with either sanitizers or water and soap to avoid transferring the virus from the hands to the eyes, nose and mouth.

However, the guideline has seen the price for sanitizers skyrocket whereas a number of other people have resorted to manufacturing fake sanitizers that they sell to members of the public expensively.

The Ministry of Health Permanent Secretary, Dr. Diana Atwine recently warned of fake sanitizers on the market which she said may be ineffective in the fight against the virus.

She said the genuine ones must be 60 percent alcoholic.

The latest development will therefore  help in bringing down the price for sanitizers but also deal with the fake ones that will no longer have market.

Currently Uganda has only 2 certified sanitizer manufacturers saraya and Go hi-tech, but this number has since Friday risen to 69 all pending certification from UNBS.

The production capacity of some of the certified companies has been 7000 to 10,000 litres of sanitizer a day but as Uganda braces for possible COVID -19 cases, more sanitizer is required.