Selling counterfeit COVID-19 vaccine

I have heard news in the international media that in other countries some people have been found selling counterfeit Covid-19 vaccines. Do we have such a law in Tanzania that addresses sale or supply of counterfeit COVID-19 vaccines?
AO, Arusha

Yes. We have such protection under our laws. Under section 76 of the Tanzania Medicine and Medical Devices Act, it is an offence to sell, supply, manufacture, import, or even merely possess any counterfeit drug. Section 3 of that Act defines the term drug broadly to include any substance or mixture of substances manufactured, sold or presented for use in prevention of a disease. COVID-19 vaccines are such substances or mixture of substances intended for prevention of COVID-19 disease.

Vaccine can be deemed to be counterfeit if: (a) it is an imitation of another vaccine likely to deceive or it bears upon its label or container the name of another vaccine which is not; (b) it purports to be a vaccine of a manufacturer of whom it is not truly its product; (c) container in which the real vaccine was packed has been substituted wholly or in part by another substance which is not the original vaccine packed in that container; (d) the label or container purporting to contain the vaccine bears the name of a fictitious manufacturer who does not exist.

A person convicted of an offence relating to counterfeit COVID-19 vaccine is liable to imprisonment for a term not less than 2 years. Because this is a serious offence, there is a likelihood that the offender can be sentenced to more than the minimum sentence of 2 years.