On water certification, to guarantee good, safe, and drink
able water for all, the agency successfully  ushered into the country the Mobile Digital Water Testing Service System which is the first of its kind in the nation’s history of water packaging regulation and certification to effect an on-the-spot assessment and certification of satchet and bottled water to complement its physical factory-to -factory inspection service through which numerous water producing plants were certified and some erring water producing firms disqualified nationwide.
The laborious earning of global recognition for Nigeria indigenous drug plants through the World Health Organization (W.H.O) pre-qualification goodmanufpctwing.practice certification which led to the emergence of four pharmaceutical plants Swiss pharmaceuticals, May and  Baker Nigeria Ltd, Chi pharmaceuticals and Evans Medical Plc as  premier beneficiaries of this Orhii initiative is indeed worthy of note in this direction.
Enforcement activities of the agency has remained unbelievably impressive with multi-billion naira worth of fake/ counterfeit pharmaceuticals, unwholesome foods including other substandard regulated products intercepted, seized and destroyed. On the other hand, successful apprehension/ arrest, prosecution and conviction of perpetrators of these heinous, obnoxious and murderous acts, numerous culprits/suspects irrespective of societal status (high profile cases) were successfully handled by the agency.
While numerous impressive high profile convictions were equally successfully secured by the agency in law courts resulting in long jail term sentences handed over to culprits, thereby marking a radical departure in the agency’s enforcement exploits, a total overhaul of NAFDAC enabling legal framework to accord it a befitting enforcement strength was equally achieved thereby upgrading its enforcement operations and techniques/capabilities. While maximum and internationally acceptable standard of sanity was entrenched in Herbal Medicine Practice nationwide, the agency under the current management has also performed distinctly in infrastructural development thereby bringing about the construction, rehabilitation and re-equipping of sophisticated scientific laboratories, acquisition, refurbishing and building of new office accommodations for the agency in other states of the federation including staff residential quarters, among others.
Another dynamic innovation in its anti- counterfeiting crusade is the engagement of indigenous celebrities-singers, actors, and actresses. For instance, an acclaimed Nigerian singer Mr. Tu-face Idibia, was recently adopted as NAFDAC ambassador thereby enhancing dynamic positive enlightenment campaigns for the agency’s activities both indigenously and globally.
Astonishingly in an attempt to further boost its consumer engagement efforts, NAFDAC successfully put forward to the general public efficient mobile applications while simultaneously sustaining as well as introducing series of novel practices into the agency’s annual honor/ awards for deserving members of NAFDAC workforce. Implicatively, this has resulted in the presentation of series of distinct honors, awards, rewards, upliftment and recognition to NAFDAC staff who successfully performed assigned official duties outstandingly, uniquely and remarkably.
Understandably, there is no doubt that NAFDAC Director -eneral is living up to his promise not to rest on his oars, while striving to ensure that counterfeiting of the agency’s regulated products in the Federal Republic of Nigeria outrightly becomes a thing of the past.
Unrivaled international exposure and enhancement of NAFDAC operations leading to series of international responsibilities and engagements on the path of the agency and its substantive Chief Executive such as being appointed as Vice Chairman of the International Medical Products Anti-Counterfeiting Taskforce (IMPACT) based in Geneva. Switzerland comprising 193 member nations globally.
Also in an attempt to strengthen the agency’s workforce lntellectual capacity, the organization were maximally upgraded and equipped with assorted ultra-modern electronic facilities to enable it contend with modern global practice leading to acquisition of electronic data base for its libraries nationwide.
International partnership for effective anti- drug counterfeiting activities has led to the sustenance of robust working relationship with numerous countries of the world like United States of America, the People’s Republic of China, Argentina, Canada, India, the European Union nations, Brazil, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Russian Federation, Libya, African countries, Romania etc.
Apart from also earning the coveted Chairmanship of the West African Drug Regulatory Authorities Network (WA.D.R.A.N) which is a union of all West African nations Pharmaceutical products regulatory bodies, Chairman W.H.O’s  mechanism for the international fight against spurious, substandard and counterfeit medicines known as the organizations members state mechanism on substandard, spurious, falsely-labelled, falsified, counterfeited medical products. Undoubtedly, these unquantifiable impacts and achievements has numerously earned for the agency and Nigeria mass excellence awards both at home and abroad.
However,these historic,laudable and highly appreciable performance /stewardship is not without series of supreme sacrifices made by the agency’s patriotic personnel whose performance has been at the expense of their life thereby necessitating the clarnour for comprehensive life insurance policy and befitting internationally comparable remuneration for them as an ideal multivational tonic.
For instance,while assassination attempt was made on Dr Paul.B. Orhii NAFDAC Director-General recently,one of its senior officials in its Port-Harcourt office, Mr. Emeka Obi Nwolie ( now late) was murdered ,four of its staff who had gone on condolence visit to the deceased family were equally adopted but later released its personnel at Oshobgo, Mrs Yeduni Adenuga, who led a team of inspectors on routine inspection to bakeries in the state were mercilessly attacked and almost lynched by a mob supporting a bakery operator/owner, Mr. Nurudeen Afolabi who was found in possession of a banned killer/cancer causing substance known as potassium bromate.
Also recently,two staff of the agency attached to its Delta State office in Asaba narrowly escaped death along the Onitsha-Asaba Expressway while on official assignment when the agency’s official multi-purpose Hilux vehicle got involved in a terrible accident. These are few of several such incidences as the list is endless.

Olkhilae is a Lagos-based  publc affairs analyst.
Concluded.

Martins Olkhilae