Almost $1 million in anti-malaria drugs were missing or had expired in Tanzania earlier this year, according to a routine audit by a Swiss donor of global health projects.
Some $810,000 in drugs were unaccounted for, while $130,000 more had expired in the country's medical warehouses before they could be delivered to patients, according to results from a routine audit by the
, published in June.
The report partly blamed the computerized management system used by the country's Medical Storage Department for the problem.
"Given the volume of procurements of medicines and health supplies under the grants, a well-functioning inventory control and management system is necessary to establish tracking and accounting for procurement, storage and distribution of medicines and other health products in the entire supply chain," it argued.
The audit, which was carried out in January and February in eight Tanzanian districts, covered the implementation by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Prime Minister's Office, the African Medical and Research Foundation and the Tanzania Commission for AIDS of programs financed by the Global Fund.
Local media reported that the government was looking into the issue.
The Global Fund has asked international professional services firm PricewaterhouseCooper to carry out investigations on the issue.
