Congo health officials announced July 15 that free HIV/AIDS tests and anti-malaria medication will be made available to children and pregnant women, Agence France-Presse reports (afp.google.com 7/15).
According to the article, theft and resale of medicines on the black market, sometimes by medical staff, is a major problem in Congo, where tuberculosis, malaria and HIV/AIDS are the top three killers.
Congo Health Minister Emilienne Raoul told reporters during the launch of this new campaign at the country’s Brazzaville children’s hospital that precautions should be taken to ensure that these drugs go directly to the people who need them and not to profiteers.
“The medicines are for the sick and must not end up on the streets and in neighboring countries,” Raoul warns.
