A drink made from a bright-green fern-like plant is being promoted in African countries as the go-to cure for Covid-19.
But detractors, with undisguised scorn, dismiss claims for the concoction as at best useless — and at worst dangerous.
Guinea-Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embalo made a point of personally taking delivery of his country’s Covid-Organics order at the airport. “I’m swamped,” grinned Haoua Wardougou, an apothecary in a working-class district of the Chad capital N’Djamena. “I have lots of customers who want to buy some, but I’m out of stock.”The counterpart to this enthusiasm is the cool reception that the drink has met in the West.
Some African countries are exercising caution, handing over their stocks of Covid-Organics for expert analysis. Clearly thrilled by his new continental fame, Rajoelina is an unabashed defender of Covid-Organics, charging that the West scorns the concoction because of its condescending attitude toward traditional African medicine.
“This plant is a weed that can grow anywhere,” he said. “The only problem is to grow it in conditions that will make it competitive with Chinese rivals.” Another, Eveline Raharimalala, said anything below 15,000 ariary was not worth growers’ while. She noted that artemisia takes six months to grow — three times longer than other crops.
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