COVID-19: WAHO rejects report on approving Malagasy Covid-Organics drug for coronavirus
Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso (PANA) - The West African Health Organization (WAHO) on Thursday rejected a report that it had approved Covid-Organics (CVO), a Malagasy drug for treating the coronavirus disease.
"Our attention has been drawn to a story that has made front page of the media and that ECOWAS has ordered a batch of the drug called Covid-Organics from a third country," said a statement issued by WAHO.
"We would like to indicate that ECOWAS and its health institution, WAHO, are dissociating themselves from this assertion, and inform the public that we have never ordered the drug," said the statement from WAHO headquarters in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso.
The WAHO stressed that as part of its mandate to safeguard and improve the health of the region's populations, it remains committed to promoting the practices and products of rational traditional medicine in the ECOWAS area, and has worked consistently for years with member states in scientific studies on proven herbal medicines.
"These products are documented in our ECOWAS Traditional Medicines Pharmacopeia, the second edition of which will be published in the coming weeks," the statement said.
Recently, WAHO identified, maintained and supported centres of excellence in traditional medicine across the ECOWAS region.
"We know that many statements have been made in different parts of the world that claim to have found the cure for Covid-19, but we can only support and approve products whose effectiveness has been demonstrated by scientific studies." organization added.
That's why WAHO is working with relevant partners, including WHO, the African Centre for Disease Control (Africa CDC), and national, regional and international research consortia to promote scientific research on a cure for the disease, the statement explained.
"We are also working with member states on some of the drugs available in clinical trials and for compassionate use in some serious cases" it said, arguing that at the moment a number of centres of excellence in traditional space medicine ECOWAS is also carrying out studies on products of potential efficiency.
The ECOWAS Commission and WAHO will continue to focus on implementing decisions taken by ECOWAS heads of state and government at their recent extraordinary summit on the fight against Covid-19, one of which is to strengthen cooperation among member states on research, training and sharing of experiences in the field of health in general and the fight against Covid-19 in particular.
-0- PANA TNDD/JSG/BBA/AR 7May2020
