Un rapport by UNODC published on Tuesday January 31, 2023 mentions that at least 605 tons of falsified or substandard medical products were seized between 2017 and 2021 in West Africa.

The UN Office on Drugs and Crime focuses on five countries in the Sahel such as Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Chad, and Niger. Indeed, the rate of substandard or falsified medicines on the market varies from 19 to 50% depending on these countries. Some of these countries (around 40%) have even joined the legal supply chain: that is, they are in pharmacies.