Burkina Faso to Purchase Generic AIDS Drugs From Indian Company

The government of Burkina Faso on Tuesday signed a contract to purchase generic AIDS drugs from the Indian pharmaceutical firm Cipla. Health Minister Alain Yoda said the deal will bring down prices of AIDS medicine to $37-$70 per month. Under an earlier agreement reached with a European company, treatment cost up to $150 a month. However, prices remain "an obstacle for the treatment of a great number of people who really need them," Yoda said. About 6.5 percent of Burkina Faso's 12 million citizens are infected with HIV, according to a recent UN study. Currently only 675 people in the country are being treated with AIDS drugs, Yoda said. About 45 percent of the nation's population survives on less than $120 a year.

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