-by our correspondent.
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has closed down six manufacturers of finished pharmaceutical products in Nigeria.
In a statement, the Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, said the action follows a nationwide surveillance on the activities of the manufacturers to forestall the circulation of substandard and falsified drugs in in the country.
“These local manufacturers, despite appropriate notification, failed to meet minimum Good Manufacturing Practice standards in line with extant requirements which are required to assure the quality, safety and efficacy of pharmaceutical products.” The statement read.
The NAFDAC-DG, however, maintained that the companies will remain shut until they comply with the set standards.
“The current actions are to serve as deterrents to all local and foreign manufacturers who may not want to comply with basic GMP requirements and join the agency in its renewed campaign to rid the country of Substandard and Falsified medicines.” Adeyeye noted.
“NAFDAC owes the nation the onerous responsibility of safeguarding public health and will not backtrack in ensuring that only medicines that are safe, efficacious and of good quality are accessible to the Nigerian public.” She added.
NAFDAC in its current effort and relentless drive to address the challenges of Substandard and Falsified medicines in Nigeria recently blacklisted a foreign manufacturer of finished pharmaceutical products and delisted its local representative for gross violation of NAFDAC extant laws and regulations.
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