The US is considering moving HIV/Aids drugs stuck in a Kenyan port to other countries that need them, its embassy in Kenya says.
The anti-retroviral drugs arrived in January and have been at the Mombasa port due to an ongoing stalemate on tax and permits.
The embassy says considering the expiry date, it may be easier to move the drugs to another country for use.
The Kenyan government waived the taxes but a revenue authority official is quoted as saying that some containers are still awaiting a permit from USAID.
Last week a spokesperson for the U.S. Agency for International Development said that a large shipment of HIV medication stuck in diplomatic limbo has not yet been released — despite remarks made by Mutahi Kagwe, Kenyan Cabinet secretary for health.
The Kenyan government has been in a stalemate with USAID over a large batch of antiretroviral treatment and other donated health supplies that have been stranded at the Port of Mombasa since mid-January.
The issue under dispute is which entity will distribute the drugs: Kenya Medical Supplies Authority or the U.S.-based private company Chemonics.