NAFDAC And Intensification Of Regulatory Activities

Those who feel that NAFDAC has become less effective in the fulfilment of its statutory responsibilities over the years may need to have a rethink as the Agency’s Director General, Professor Mojisola Christiana Adeyeye, says its current management team under her watch has remained more resolute, determined and well-focused than ever in the commitment to rid Nigeria of fake and substandard regulated products of the agency.
As a silent achiever and scientific revolutionarist, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye is of the view that a lot has been and is still being achieved by the Agency in all areas of its statutory responsibilities.
The NAFDAC chief executive officer assured that she has left no stone unturned in her determination to rid the nation of fake pharmaceuticals and other unwholesome products of the agency’s interest.
The Director General bared her mind on her efforts at the agency so far and other sundry issues while speaking with Nigeria media practitioners on Tuesday 12th April, 2022 at the Organisation’s Corporate Office Complex Auditorium along Apapa/Oshodi expressway in Lagos.
Speaking at the well-attended press meeting, Professor Adeyeye assured Nigerians of the agency’s management competence and determination to leave up to Nigerians’ expectations in the fulfilment of its statutory mandate, stressing that NAFDAC under her, has not and will never lose its steam as a regulatory agency.
The NAFDAC boss, who debunked the rumour that the agency was fast becoming a toothless bull-dog leading to slow response to regulatory issues, explained that due to the digitalistion of its port directorate, detections, enforcement and regulations have become more encouraging and effective.
Passionately, the NAFDAC helms woman told her story of how she labouriously and patriotically steered the agency’s administrative vessel (ship) from its past leadership to anchor admirably and decently while simultaneously admitting that more need to be done progressively.
According to her, over 3 billion naira worth of fake drugs and other regulated products of the agency were recently seized in Lagos state as part of effort to stamp out influx of fake pharmaceuticals.
While not denying the fact that few quantities of fake NAFDAC regulated products still reside in some Nigerian communities, the anti-fake drugs Caesar explained that incidence of fake drugs could be more in border towns and villages but out rightly minimal in the hinterland (towns and cities) due to the extremely porous nature of our land borders.
The amiable professor opined that recent United States Pharmacopeia (USP) and NAFDAC survey in reasonable number of Nigerian states has revealed minimal percentage presence of fake anti-malaria drugs in circulation.
She said the indebtedness of the agency which stood at a whopping sum of ¦ 3.2 billion naira when she took over leadership baton at the agency, have been successfully neutralised with the payment of 3.01 billion naira off the debt by the NAFDAC current administration under the acclaimed noiseless Professor Adeyeye.
She maintained that owing to her dogged efforts, the agency’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure, budgetary procedures and practices, products certification applications numbering over 6,000, provision of logistics and facilities for NAFDAC inspections to avoid compromise, evolution of a dynamic quality management system via gazetting of NAFDAC regulations leading to the attainment of maturity level three otherwise known as ML3 status of the World Health Organisation (WHO) which is vaccines production enabling and facilitating certification, introduction of government backed secured E-mail to transmit reports etc., acquisition of more laptops for the agency’s personnel was attained.
A long standing agreement which would boost local Covid – 19 vaccines production assuming a public private partnership (PPP) on Bio-Vaccines on which Nigerian Federal Government has 49 percent stake while May and Baker, an indigenous pharmaceutical firm has 51 percent was already implemented/activated – she remarked.
Also in an attempt to mop-up and avert circulation of fake drugs, 40 (forty) units of a scientific handheld device worth 57,000 United States dollars each were procured by the agency, she acknowledges stating that also recently, NAFDAC officials were drafted to China and India where they inspected laboratories and production facilities of 19 pharmaceutical plants for regulatory compliant practices otherwise known as Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) Certification.
Expectedly, the agency’s quality assurance regulation cum assessment procedures were being regularly and professionally put in checks with a view to bringing it constantly in consonance with international best practices in the sector, she further elucidated adding that this was made possible through unflinching collaboration between NAFDAC and both indigenous and foreign agencies like the World Health Organisation (WHO), Nigeria Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRID), United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) etc.
Apparently referring to Nigeria’s status in the committee of nations which has accorded her (Nigeria) the status of a “Giant of Africa”, which requires it to be up and doing in all facets of national growth with a view to sustaining its prideful place in leadership, Professor Adeyeye opined that retaining this leadership status (Giant of Africa) has unquestionably placed on Nigeria’s shoulders the need to compulsorily ensure that health boosting NAFDAC regulated products, comply with international standards or best practices.  “You cannot be a giant without acceptable standards”, she added.
On the proliferation of fake herbal mixtures and trado-medicals the director-general pointed out that NAFDAC was out rightly on top of the game as very stringent efforts and measures have been put in place to avert such unwholesome practice/development in the country.  Professor Adeyeye maintained that NAFDAC manpower development to boost efficiency and effectiveness has equally been accorded well deserved priority which has paid off by boosting the agency’s operations locally and internationally.
The professor further explained that in order to boost and intensify indigenous production of pharmaceuticals, a pharmaceutical intervention fund aimed at bringing succour to indigenous production plants in the sector was being sustained and it involves Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).  This will ensure availability of steady financial bailout for these drug firms for sustainability and growth.
Considerably it is also expected that this gesture will boost employment opportunities for professionals in the sector and foster products price reduction cum export, she hinted.
The Amazon NAFDAC head stated that the agency’s new digitalised ports directorate and other departments have been proactive and highly efficient in the discharge of assigned responsibilities as evident in the reasonable sanity which has so far pervaded the production and movement of pharmaceutical products nationwide.
She revealed that this patriotic and professionalised efforts of NAFDAC work force under her as head, led to the recent seizure of 80 types of fake drugs recently shipped into the country from China and India by some disgruntled elements in the pharmaceutical trade.
The NAFDAC director general further informed the Nigeria news hounds that the agency as a matter of tradition does embark on periodic assessment of quality standards for medicines in circulation nationwide to ensure that available pharmaceuticals are produced intandem with international standard.
Professor Adeyeye, who emphasised the need for Nigerians to support the agency for greater and more progressive achievements revealed that a quality assessment exercise for drugs was recently embarked upon by NAFDAC and the World Health organisation (WHO) in reasonable number of Nigerian cities and towns to determine the prevalence of fake/substandard drugs in Nigeria and the outcome of the survey was maximally impressive and highly revealing.
On NAFDAC recertification of Covid-19 vaccines moved into the country from foreign nations, the D.G averred that despite having been tested by the WHO and certified for use worldwide as widely acknowledged, NAFDAC still reserves the right to subject the vaccines to further re-assessment/scientific recertification processes before being used by Nigerians to ensure that they are in line with specified relevant and acceptable standards, while promising that the agency under her as chief executive will continuously record enormous progress and never know retrogression.

By: Martins F. O. Ikhilae

Ikhilae is a Public Affairs Analyst.