The National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has identified Aba, Kano, Lagos and Onitsha as hotspots, aiding the sale of substandard drug in Nigeria.
Director-General of NAFDAC, Mojisola Adeyeye, made the revelation during an interview at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) forum in Abuja.
She said that open-drug markets in these cities had become hubs for substandard medicine distribution, posing serious public health risks.
“Open-drug markets, located in Kano, Aba, Onitsha, and Lagos, sometimes aided the sale of substandard drugs,” Adeyeye noted.
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She explained that in the past, the control of patent medicine dealers was relieved by the Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria (PCN), leading to an influx of fake drugs into the country.
The NAFDAC boss further said that legal battles further compounded the issue, with patent medicine dealers and open-drug marketers taking PCN to court for nearly 10 years to continue their illegal activities and remove regulations.
However, the matter took a turn with the intervention of a judge who ruled in favour of PCN on February 16.
NAFDAC and PCN have since intensified their efforts to eliminate substandard and falsified medicines from circulation.
Adeyeye noted that open-drug marketers have been relocated to the Kanawa coordinated centre in Kano but cautioned them against selling substandard products.
To protect Nigerians, NAFDAC has implemented a multi-strategic mechanism to control substandard and falsified medicines, including 12 means of control.
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To further prevent substandard products, NAFDAC has tightened import inspections, including conducting a “Clean Report Inspection Analysis” before approving drugs from countries like India and China.
Port inspections have also been reinforced, with questionable drugs subjected to lab testing. Recently, 180 substandard products were blocked from entering the country at the ports.
Adeyeye also warned against importing dangerous chemicals, emphasizing NAFDAC’s collaboration with the Office of the National Security Adviser to halt such practices.
The agency remains committed to protecting Nigerians from counterfeit medicines and ensuring public health safety.
