Gulu varsity still hunting Shs3.7b for Covilyce-1 trials
Covylice-1 is a herbal medicine produced by Gulu University as a supportive treatment for coronavirus. PHOTO | FILE
What you need to know:
- Prof Openjuru said whereas the development of the medicine attracted the attention of the government, the delay in releasing the funds has frustrated their efforts.
Gulu University’s Faculty of Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Studies has said it is stuck with stocks of Covilyce-1, a herbal medicine used as a supportive treatment for coronavirus, after failing to secure funds for clinical trials.
In July 2021, President Museveni asked the university to progress with the development of Covilyce-1.
Mr Museveni also directed the Finance ministry to immediately give the university Shs3.7 billion to develop the medicine.
On Tuesday, the university vice chancellor, Prof George Openyjuru, told Daily Monitor in an interview that they don’t have funds to conduct clinical trials.
Prof Openjuru said whereas the development of the medicine attracted the attention of the government, the delay in releasing the funds has frustrated their efforts.
“We engaged with the President in several meetings at the State House in Entebbe, but no money has been released. The university cannot do the clinical trials without this money,” he said.
This newspaper, however, established that the university is set to receive the funds from the government in the next Financial Year 2022/2023.
Last month, Dr Monica Musenero, the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, was at the university to assess all science-related innovation technologies, which included the Covilyce-1 Project and the Mango Juice Project.
While meeting the university administration, she said the fund for herbal medicine development had been incorporated in the next financial year’s budget pending approval by Parliament. Dr Musenero said the ministry has implored the university to apply for funding, adding that if they qualify, they will use the available funds for pre-clinical trials before the release of Shs3.7 billion.
A group of at least ten scientists from the university’s Faculty of Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Studies (Pharm-Biotech) started production of four different concoctions, which they said they have been administering to Covid-19 patients in the community since January 2021.
Besides the Covid-19 herbal concoction, the scientists claimed they have developed herbal remedies for the treatment of sickle cell, peptic ulcer, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and asthma.
