We were lucky enough to have the Ugandan John Kilama from the Global Biosciences Development Institute over for lunch today.
John argued that most of the debate about health in Africa, which focuses on such things as the cost of medicines and intellectual property, is totally wide of the mark.
In fact, the African healthcare crisis is completely homegrown. John pointed out the egregious taxes and tariffs most African governments impose onto imported medicines, as well as the daedalean complexity of getting a new drug registered before it can be sold.
More fundamentally, a mixture of political and economic oppression, as well as general governmental incompetence, keeps most Africans poor and unable to afford the kind of living conditions that most of us enjoy in the west. This is the reason why diseases such as diarrhoea and chest infections kill so many.
It's great to hear Africans making these points. John is going to be appearing on the BBC while he's visiting London, so do keep an eye out of for him.
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