RWANDA – Rwanda Food and Drugs Authority (Rwanda FDA) has put on hold the activities of seven water companies after an inspection revealed that they produce unsafe drinking water.

The companies include Aqua Water Ltd, CCHAF Jibu Franchise Ltd, IRIBA Water Ltd, J WAY GROUP, JIBU PHESTIVE Ltd, Perfect Water Ltd and SIP Kicukiro Ltd.

“In Line with the FDA’s mission to safeguard the health of the public, Rwanda FDA would like to warn the public about a potentially unsafe exposure to drinking water.

 “After running laboratory tests we have noticed that drinking water produced by several companies highlighted below is unsafe for consumption and thus has been suspended from production,” a statement signed by Emile Bienvenue, the Director-General of Rwanda FDA says.

As a result, Rwanda FDA said it has ordered the companies to withdraw all related water batches from the market and advised the public to take note of the notice and find the alternative options available on the market.

According to Rwanda FDA officials, some of the suspended companies were still in the process of getting a license while others were already licensed but were found wanting in terms of standards.

Commenting on the way forward, officials said that the companies will have to fix the issues which had triggered the suspension and apply for licenses to resume operations.

However, officials did not provide enough explanations and information on the fate of the mother companies of some franchisees such as Jibu and AQUA among others, and how they are regulated.

According to the New Times, Jibu Corporate (RW) Ltd released a statement apologizing to their customers for the inconvenience and assuring them to fix the issues alongside the Rwanda FDA for better quality.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has sealed 10 packaged water companies in Ondo State over non-compliance with the regulation and standards.

Ghana FDA destroys unwholesome products

Ghana’s FDA in the Upper East Region, as part of its yearly routine market surveillance activities, has also undertaken safe disposal of unwholesome and contaminated food products.

The GH¢312,720.15 (USD 38,829.87) worth of products that were disposed of through burning in the open air at a dump site at Sherigu, included food supplements, food products, and other non-food items.

Addressing newsmen after the exercise at Sherigu, the Regional Head of the FDA, Sebastian Mawuli Hotor, heaped praises on some owners of provisions shops, who willingly co-operated with the organization to get rid of the “health-threatening” products on the market.

He acknowledged their efforts in that direction, saying they did not only give consent and cooperate in the exercise of the mandate of the FDA per the Public Health Act 2012 (Act 851), but helped pay for the destruction of the regulated products.

Underscoring the need for the business community in the region to team up with the FDA to ensuring the health of the people was not compromised, he said, “Expired products are not good for consumption. We carry this exercise from time to time because we want to rid the shops of unwholesome and expired products, and to prevent the re-entry of the products onto the market.”

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