New York -- "We have not been pressured, and it was not a condition at all," Uganda’s ambassador to the United States Edith Ssempala emphatically told The Monitor Sunday. She was disputing a report by Action Aid (U.S.) that, as a condition of becoming eligible to benefit from the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), Uganda agreed to support the U.S.’s efforts to prevent manufacturers of generic AIDS drugs from exporting them.

"Definitely, Uganda wants cheap drugs for our citizens," Ssempala said. "We cannot sacrifice our citizens." She added, "Uganda cannot say we are not going to produce generic drugs, if they are effective, and the non-generic drugs are not affordable. Our choice will be our people."

However, Ssempala was also ambivalent about the value of generic AIDS drugs. She said they may be non-authentic, and she also pointed out that Uganda’s collaboration with various pharmaceutical companies has gotten the country price breaks on some drugs. "I don’t think the price of drugs is our major problem in fighting the disease," Ssempala said.

She added that President Yoweri Museveni understands the importance of protecting intellectual property rights, such as the patents for AIDS drugs. "If you remove the incentives for developing drugs, you’re not helping us either," Ssempala said.

Action Aid’s report, dated November 5, claimed that US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick called Museveni last weekend to enlist his support in a U.S. effort to get African nations behind the U.S. agenda at the World Trade Organization summit in Doha, Qatar. At a July meeting in Zanzibar, least developed countries (LDCs) agreed not to discuss new issues such as higher labour and environment standards until dealing with matters they considered more pressing, such as access to AIDS drugs.

The LDCs want permission to manufacture or import the generic drugs, but the U.S. supports a weaker declaration which would ban the export of generic versions of the drugs. Minister of Tourism, Trade and Industry Prof. Edward Rugumayo, who led Uganda’s team to Doha, told The Monitor before departure that Uganda agrees with the positions of other poor countries.

The Action Aid report came at a crucial moment for Uganda’s generic-drug manufacturers. A number of local companies are planning production of the antiretroviral drugs, including Kampala Pharmaceutical Industries and Rene Industries.