Local Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Increase by 12% – NAFDAC
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) says a total of 105 applications for the construction and erection of drug manufacturing facilities have been approved across the country.
The regulatory agency said the approved applications, which were selected from a total of 143, meet the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) guidelines of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and NAFDAC GMP for Medicinal Products Regulations 2021.
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According to a document signed by the Director General of NAFDAC, Mojisola Adeyeye, 35% of the approved applications have completed construction and are at different stages in the registration stream as prescribed by extant NAFDAC’s guidelines on the establishment of pharmaceutical plants in Nigeria.
The agency also revealed that over 20 newly registered local drug manufacturers have cumulatively invested over $2bn in the erection and completion of WHO-compliant facilities that manufacture quality pharmaceuticals and essential medicines for Nigerians.
This figure, according to NAFDAC, represents an increase of 12% in the number of active local manufacturers.
Sequel to its over-dependence and reliance on importation, Nigeria is currently battling a national shortage in drug supply as multinational pharmaceutical companies, like GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Sanofi, exit the country.
