The poorer countries probably don't require several years of FDA-style drug testing.There is a commonly used drug in the US that's basically a cheap generic that has shown promise as a cancer treatment, even though it was originally designed to do something else entirely. But since the FDA requires testing to prove that the drug is effective as a treatment for whatever illess it's used for, nobody wants to do it. You're talking about hundreds of millions of dollars and several years of clinical studies to get approval to use a drug that's already on the market. And the reason they won't do it is because it can't be re-patented, so the company that spends all the money proving the drug works for cancer won't get to sell it exclusively, and then anyone else can just start selling their own versions without putting a dime into it.So a poor country can probably develop a drug much easier and much cheaper, but it won't have gone through anywhere near as much scrutiny to prove it's safe and effective.