From June 1, cough syrup exporters will need to perform tests on the goods they sell at specific government laboratories prior to obtaining approval for outgoing deliveries.
Cough syrup manufacturers are now required by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) to have their products examined at a government lab prior to being sent abroad. From June 1, exporters must also present the certificate of analysis (CoA) from the government lab in order to ship out cough syrups.
The WHO stated on October 5 of last year that there may be a connection between tainted cough and cold syrups produced by an Indian pharmaceutical company, Maiden Pharmaceuticals Ltd., and the acute kidney damage that caused the deaths of hundreds of children in the Gambia.
"A large cluster of acute kidney injury cases affecting children in The Gambia in 2022 was associated with case fatality rates of more than 80%," an investigation by Gambian doctors with US scientists said.