By Bisi Adewumi
The Director General, National Agency for Food Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye has told Nigerian pharmaceutical companies to be ready to trade their products across the continent with quality products that can be approved in the different countries through continental reliance among regulators.
Prof. Adeyeye while giving her address on ‘From Green to Gold: Operational Realities in the 21st Century’ at the 50th Anniversary of Daily-Need Industries, in Lagos, said the pharmaceutical companies should take advantage of the African Free Trade Agreement (AfcFTA) that allows free trade among African countries.
The DG emphasised that Research and Development (R&D) is an important creativity and innovation that several companies will need to incorporate into the manufacturing environment.
Adeyeye in a statement signed by the NAFDAC Resident Media Consultant, Sayo Akintola, in Lagos on Sunday, stated that this would encourage research and clinical trials of new molecules, immune-modulators, complementary alternative medicines, especially for some non-communicable diseases such as cancer, diabetes, amongst others.
Adeyeye stated that NAFDAC was committed to supporting innovation and recognising the pharmaceutical industry through the Five-year Exclusivity that was introduced to local manufacturers in 2019 for manufacturing and marketing if the company can meet in-country market demand.
In her words, “Creativity in manufacturing can be shown through targeted drive to achieve pre-qualification of the facility and product.”
She noted that this could only be done with the goal to get certification from WHO or as part of preparation for global trade through collaborative registration and reliance among regulators.
According to her, this is being underscored today because of the African Free Trade Agreement (AfcFTA) which allows free trade among African countries.
In her submission, “Nigerian pharmaceutical companies must be ready to trade their products across the continent with quality products that can be approved in the different countries through continental reliance among regulators.”