Ethiopia Faces Critical Drug Shortage Amid Forex Shortfall

Ethiopia is grappling with a severe medicine shortage, largely due to an ongoing forex crisis.

A personal initiative to bring essential medicines from Kenya highlighted the acute need, with requests for treatment of chronic conditions like cancer and diabetes pouring in.

The situation is worsened by dwindling national bank reserves, barely sufficient for a month’s imports.

Many resort to expensive contraband medicines, risking counterfeit and substandard products.

Government efforts to transition to a manufacturing hub to reduce import reliance have been stymied by conflict and the exit of foreign investors, closing hundreds of companies.

Personal stories of importing medication due to local unavailability underline the crisis’s impact, with the forex scarcity at its core, according to business analyst Samson Berhane.

The crisis is particularly severe in conflict-hit areas like Tigray, where hospitals face a dire lack of medicines and supplies.