The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has decried the low demand for locally produced medical syringes.
The agency said the nation’s preference for importation was negatively impacting local manufacturing of the medical essentials.
NAFDAC was reacting to the discovery of over 1.5 billion unsold units of the product in one local factory alone.
Its Director General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, noted that the situation was disappointing because the quality of facilities in Nigeria’s pharmaceutical companies was at par with those in the United States or European countries.
The NAFDAC boss urged the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) to put machinery in motion to curb the importation of syringes.
In a statement by the agency’s Resident Media Consultant, Sayo Akintola, Prof. Adeyeye stressed the need for ANLCA to prioritise the nation’s interests over personal gains in playing their roles as clearing agents at the nation’s ports.
The NAFDAC boss spoke when she hosted the newly inaugurated executives of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), led by its National President, Mr. Emenike Nwokochi, at the agency’s Lagos corporate office.
Adeyeye said the standard of the facilities she met on the ground was comparable to whatever facility could be found in the U.S. or any country in Europe.
Also, the Federal Government has held a meeting with needles and syringes manufacturers in Nigeria to reduce the cost of producing pharmaceutical products.
Alausa said the meeting was convened following President Bola Tinubu’s directive to decrease the expenses associated with pharmaceutical products and medical supplies in the country.
He said: “That was why this meeting was quickly held. We explored and discussed many practical solutions where we can begin to have some quick wins, some immediate solutions that will be incorporated into the Executive Order that the President has asked us to work on as well as the medium term solutions and long-term solutions on how we can get this problem permanently and completely resolved.”
