Pharmacy Board CEO Ahmed Mohamed Urges Stronger War on Fake Medicines at Kenya Health Summit

Pharmacy and Poisons Board Chief Executive Officer and Registrar Dr. Ahmed Mohammed has said the Board is strengthening surveillance and regulatory controls to keep falsified and substandard medicines out of the Kenyan market.

Speaking during the Kenya Health Summit, Dr. Mohammed said the fight against falsified medicines remains a major challenge globally, with criminals exploiting gaps in pharmaceutical supply chains to make quick profits.

He said Kenya has faced particular challenges at its borders and ports of entry, as well as staffing constraints within the Pharmacy and Poisons Board.

However, he said the regulator has stepped up its efforts, with Board officers now deployed at all ports of entry to inspect and verify pharmaceutical products entering the country.

The officers are trained to conduct regular inspections and monitor medicines to ensure that products reaching the market meet the required quality and safety standards.

The Board has also introduced portable mini-laboratory devices that can provide an initial result within two to three minutes, enabling surveillance officers to establish whether a medicine is genuine or potentially falsified.

Public urged to avoid illegal medicine outlets

Dr. Mohammed said regulatory efforts must be complemented by responsible consumer behaviour, warning Kenyans against purchasing medicines from unregistered outlets because they are cheaper.

He said falsified medicines pose a far greater danger than counterfeit products in other sectors because they can directly threaten human life.

«“When you buy falsified medicine, the risk is too high. One life lost is too high,” he said.»

He urged Kenyans to obtain medicines only from registered and regulated pharmaceutical outlets and to be cautious about products whose source and quality cannot be established.

Pharmacy Board strengthens patient-centred care

Dr. Mohammed also said the Board is working to transform pharmacy practice from a predominantly business-oriented activity into a more patient-centred profession.

Through the introduction of Good Pharmacy Practice, pharmacists are expected to provide patients with comprehensive pharmaceutical care rather than simply dispensing medicines.

This includes explaining how medicines should be taken, advising patients about possible side effects and identifying potentially dangerous drug-drug and drug-food interactions.

He said pharmacists should also play a stronger role in monitoring and reporting adverse reactions to medicines.

Information on suspected adverse drug reactions should be forwarded to the Pharmacy and Poisons Board to help the regulator assess the safety of products and determine whether particular medicines should remain on the market.

«“We want the pharmaceutical care to be a patient-oriented rather than a business-oriented profession,” Dr. Mohammed said.»

The measures form part of broader efforts to strengthen Kenya's medicines regulatory system, protect patients and increase public confidence that medicines available in the country are safe, effective and of acceptable quality.The Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) is intensifying efforts to protect Kenyans from substandard and falsified medicines, with CEO Dr. Ahmed Mohamed reaffirming its commitment to stronger medicines safety, enforcement, and regional regulatory cooperation.

 Dr. Mohamed said the Board is also involved in continental efforts to harmonize medicines regulation under the Africa Medicines Agency (AMA), which is promoting alignment of regulatory systems across African countries. He noted that while technical progress is being made, successful harmonization requires strong political commitment in addition to technical work.

Regionally, he highlighted progress within the East African Community (EAC), where member states have harmonized key medicines registration documents. Applications now follow a coordinated EAC process, with Tanzania currently serving as the lead country. Once approved, medicines are registered across the region, reducing duplication and improving efficiency.

The renewed focus comes amid concerns over falsified and substandard medicines, which can cause treatment failure, fuel antimicrobial resistance, and undermine public trust. Dr. Mohamed said the PPB is strengthening enforcement and surveillance to address these risks.

On medicine pricing, he said access and affordability remain key challenges and confirmed his involvement in a committee working on price harmonization to improve fairness across the sector.

He also noted that enforcement data, including arrest statistics, is not currently published on the PPB website, but the Board plans to begin releasing regulatory reports online to improve transparency and accountability. For now, such information is available upon request.

Under his leadership, the PPB is pursuing broader reforms aimed at efficiency, transparency, and patient safety, including progress toward WHO Maturity Level 3 status. The Board is also strengthening collaboration with stakeholders to ensure only safe and effective medicines reach patients.

Dr. Mohamed said the fight against fake medicines is central to Kenya’s health system strengthening and universal health coverage goals. He added that the Board is investing in digital systems to track medicines across the supply chain to improve monitoring and detect counterfeit products more quickly.

He also urged the public to buy medicines only from licensed pharmacies and verify authenticity where possible, emphasizing community awareness as a key part of pharmacovigilance.

Finally, he called for stronger cooperation with law enforcement, customs, and international partners to dismantle cross-border networks involved in illegal medicines, noting that coordinated action is essential to address increasingly sophisticated pharmaceutical crime.