For the past twenty years, all imported drugs and food have been tested for quality control in Kabul, as there are no other laboratories in the provinces to test the medicine and food being imported into Afghanistan from various cross-border routes.

Officials of Afghanistan’s Medicine Service Union say the Afghan government has failed to set up standard medicine laboratories in other provinces over the past four years. 

The officials, while criticizing the lack of sufficient laboratories in the country, said the imported medicine and food samples are being collected from all provinces and brought to Kabul for quality control tests, which prolongs the transportation of medicines and testing process longer than needed.  

“It has been ordered that the laboratories should be built, but, unfortunately, the government has not been able to build regional quality control laboratories for the last four years. Luckily, merchants have agreed to build these (laboratories),” said Asadullah Kakar, head of the Medicine service’s union. 

Meanwhile, officials at the National Food and Drug Administration say they are closely working with the private sector to build standard laboratories in the five areas of the country where medicines are being imported. 

“Standard quality control laboratories should be built. These laboratories are essential for the quality control of imported medicines and foods. They assure us of the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of the medicines and foods that are being imported. We are in contact with the private sector in this regard,” said Mohammad Ibrahim Shinwar, head of the National Food and Drug Administration. 

Afghanistan is dependent on imported medicines and it has only one central laboratory to test the quality of imported medicine and food.  

Based on primary information and figures, more than $1 billion worth of medicine and medical supplies are imported into the country each year.

Many people in Afghanistan complain about the poor quality of imported medicines and say the government has failed to provide high-quality medicine for its citizens.