Ethiopia has procured pharmaceuticals and medical equipment worth more than 5 billion birr in the just ended financial year according to the Ethiopian Pharmaceuticals Fund and Supply Agency.
The purchase includes more than 300 types of medical and pharmaceutical supplies including chemical, antibiotics and equipment said Yared Yigezu, Director of Procurement Forecast and Capacity Building with the agency.
Significant medical equipment including an MRI and digital mammography are amongst the purchases in the reporting period he explained.
Antibiotics are important because many diseases in Ethiopia are bacterial in nature and inefficient drugs have been resulting in resistance according to Yared.
Multi-drug resistant strains of malaria and tuberculosis requiring more expensive medication and a longer period of treatment are particular examples of this particular challenge he noted.
Source: Ethiopian News Agency
