The Chemistry, Food and Drugs Division is facing questions over the absence of a public list of approved pharmaceuticals allowed to enter Trinidad and Tobago.
The issue was raised during a Public Administration and Appropriations Committee inquiry into the State’s acquisition of pharmaceuticals on Monday.
Chairman of the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee (PAAC), Jagdeo Singh, chastised the Chemistry, Food and Drugs Division for its failure to publicly provide a list of approved pharmaceuticals allowed to be imported into Trinidad and Tobago. He said the absence of a public list could lead to the sale and abuse of non-approved drugs on the local market.
“So there’s no one single portal which any member of the public wishing to import pharmaceuticals can go to and say, ‘Listen, this is what is approved, and this is what is not approved.'”
Chief Chemist and Acting Director of the Chemistry, Food and Drugs Division, Hasmath Ali, responded: “There’s no comprehensive list on any portal where the public can go and look for that list of registered drugs at this time.”
When questioned by PAAC member Leroy Baptiste on the failure to provide the listing, Mr. Ali explained that the task is a bit difficult.
“The total number of drugs registered in Trinidad and Tobago to date exceeds 21,000 drugs, right? And therefore compiling a comprehensive list at one time, it’s quite difficult.”
Mr. Ali assured the Committee that the Division is working on an online database that aims to address the issue.
“Currently, Chair, that system is almost ready to be published within this first quarter of the year and the reason for the delay is that it’s just not one list of registered drugs. It’s four lists, or four databases, in fact. There’s one on general pharmaceuticals and controlled drugs. There’s one on narcotics, one on antibiotics, and another database on pesticides, all on the same server.”