Islamabad:Federal Minister for Health Mustafa Kamal stated that the Ministry of Health is dedicated to eliminating counterfeit medicines across the country.

According to Radio Pakistan, during a meeting in Islamabad to assess the progress of '2D Barcode' trials intended to combat counterfeit drugs, the minister highlighted that the Ministry has been working on implementing 2D Barcodes on medicines for the last eighteen months. The Barcode is now a mandatory requirement for all medicines.

The Health Minister also noted that both local and multinational pharmaceutical companies are obligated to incorporate 2D Barcodes and serial numbers on their manufactured medicines. Furthermore, imported medicines will not be allowed for sale anywhere in the country without a '2D Barcode'.

During the meeting, the CEO of the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) provided a briefing on the implementation of '2D Barcodes' and serialization. It was also reported that DRAP has completed the necessary training for representatives of pharmaceutical companies and other stakeholders in this initiative.