NAFDAC, BoI earmark N200bn for local drug manufacturers

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The Federal Government has released N200bn Pharmaceutical Development Fund to assist local pharmaceutical industries to attain the World Health Organisation pre-qualification.

The gesture is also meant to ensure easy access to medicines, which meet unified standards of quality, safety and efficacy for HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.

The Director-General of NAFDAC, Dr. Paul Orhii, stated this on Thursday in Abuja during the opening ceremony of stakeholders’ meeting on quality monitoring of medicines in Nigeria.

The event was organised by NAFDAC in collaboration with United States Pharmacopeia to discuss a roadmap that would further strengthen NAFDAC’s regulatory capacity to effectively monitor the quality of medicines.

According to him, capacity building through human resource capacity development, upgrade of laboratories and continuous training of officers tops the agenda for strengthening NAFDAC’s regulatory capacity.

He said, “We are supporting the local pharmaceutical sector to build appropriate capacity to produce drugs that meet international standards and reduce the dependence on imports.

“We are actively encouraging the local pharmaceutical industry to work towards attaining WHO prequalification which will facilitate access to medicines that meet unified standards of quality, safety and efficacy for HIV / AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.

“NAFDAC, in collaboration with the Bank of Industry, facilitated a N200bn Pharmaceutical Development Fund in a bid to providing support to the pharmaceutical sector as well as ensuring an enabling environment for the growth and development of the local pharmaceutical industry.”

Orhii also stated that NAFDAC was reviewing the current law “which stipulates a fine of N500, 000.00 or 15 year jail term upon conviction of offenders” involved in the sale, distribution, importation and advertisement of counterfeit regulated products, to make the law serve as a deterrent.

He said, “The new law seeks life jail term and confiscation of assets upon conviction, compensation for victims if product is found to be the proximate cause of death or severe bodily injury, and to make this a non-bailable offense.”