The Parliamentary Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) has put the National Medical Stores (NMS) on the spot over the registration of expired medicines worth Shs8.04 billion in the financial year that ended on June 30, 2025.
The revelations emerged during a committee session where legislators questioned NMS officials over the continued accumulation of expired medicines despite persistent shortages of essential drugs in health facilities across the country.
According to the Auditor General’s report, the expired stock included Shs530 million worth of government-owned medicines and Shs7.51 billion worth of medicines supplied by development partners.
Although the figure represents a significant 97% reduction from the Shs316 billion worth of expired drugs recorded in the previous financial year—largely COVID-19 vaccines—the committee maintained that the losses remain unacceptable.
COSASE members questioned how such large quantities of medicines could expire while many public health facilities continue to report stock-outs of lifesaving drugs.
Some legislators demanded a detailed inventory of the expired medicines and accountability from those responsible for procurement and inventory management.
NMS attributed the expiries to a mismatch between the country’s medicine requirements and procurement, as well as changes in treatment guidelines issued by the World Health Organization (WHO) after some medicines had already been purchased.
Officials also cited funding constraints that affect the timely procurement and distribution of essential medicines.
