Uganda, Kenya to get new generic tablets for children with HIV

Among six African countries, Uganda and Kenya are all set to receive new generic strawberry-flavored tablets for ministering children infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), according to a report by Daily Monitor.

As per reports, the new generic tablets will be provided in the first half of 2021, as the other countries include Malawi, Nigeria, Benin, and Zimbabwe.

The countries will be benefited from the Unitaid and Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) partnership with development of dolutegravir (DTG), generic drug makers.

As said by the agency, "The product will be made initially available in Benin, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Uganda and Zimbabwe in first half of 2021, with plans for rapid scale-up of dispersible DTG 10mg across a broad set of countries".

Adding to it, Mutahi Kagwe, the Health Cabinet Secretary of Kenya said that Kenya is the first-adopter of the DTG's new pediatric formulation. "We are delighted that for the first time Kenya and other countries can provide children same quality of treatment as adults," Kagwe said.

Around 1.7 million children in the world are reportedly living with HIV, however, only half of them receive treatment while over 100,000 die every year.

On it Philippe Duneton, the executive director of Unitaid said, "Children in low- and middle-income countries often wait years to access the same medications as adults, hindering quality of life or even resulting in preventable deaths".