Nigeria’s inability to achieve medicine security is not due to a lack of laws or regulatory frameworks but to a lack of political will and commitment to implementing existing policies, pharmaceutical experts have said.
The experts cited the country’s continued dependence on imported medicines, foreign exchange volatility, high operating costs, weak supply chain coordination and inadequate patronage of locally manufactured products as some of the persistent challenges confronting the pharmaceutical industry.
They spoke at the plenary session of the recent scientific conference of the West Africa Postgraduate College of Pharmacists (WAPCP), Nigeria Chapter, on the topic: “Strengthening Local Pharmaceutical Manufacturing in Nigeria for Medicine Security, Quality and Sustainable Patient Care”.
The session was moderated by the Managing Director of Pinecrest Healthcare Limited, Dr Chijioke Onyia, while the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Merit Healthcare Limited, Dr Lolu Ojo, and Professor Margaret Ilomuanya of the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lagos, were speakers.
Setting the tone for the discussion, Prof. Ilomuanya defined medicine security as more than simply having medicines available, saying drugs must be accessible, affordable, safe and effective, without the threat of counterfeiting.
She said genuine medicine security must also be supported by a knowledge ecosystem capable of continuously developing local expertise and technologies for pharmaceutical production. According to her, Nigeria cannot claim to have achieved medicine security if it continues to depend heavily on imported medicines, even when such medicines are of high quality.
The pharmacy expert pointed out that the country must develop the knowledge and capacity to produce medicines locally rather than depending on external sources for both products and expertise.
While identifying the factors militating against medicine security in Nigeria, Ilomuanya said the country must first demonstrate that it is serious about solving the problem, noting that the current level of commitment required for Nigeria to attain medicine security is lacking.
“Well, the first thing is, I think, as a nation, we are not serious about achieving medicine security,” the professor said.
She argued that Nigeria already has laws covering several of the challenges confronting the pharmaceutical sector, including informal markets, weak penalties, poor supply chain coordination and porous borders. According to her, rather than continuously introducing new legislation, the government should concentrate on enforcing existing laws and back this up with the necessary seriousness.
“We do not need more laws. We need to work with the ones that we already have,” she said.
She also called for better coordination among NAFDAC, the Nigeria Customs Service, foreign affairs authorities and other stakeholders involved in the pharmaceutical supply chain. She added that informal medicine markets could also be brought into the formal system through appropriate legislation and the involvement of pharmacists.
In his remarks, Dr Lolu Ojo supported the professor’s position, saying the first step towards achieving medicine security was for Nigeria to “get serious” about local production. He identified overdependence on imports as one of the biggest obstacles to the development of local drug manufacturing in Nigeria.
Ojo lamented that the challenge in Nigeria goes beyond pharmaceuticals, saying the country’s manufacturing sector remains heavily dependent on imported machinery, equipment and other inputs. According to him, apart from water, almost every other input required to produce medicines is imported.
He said foreign exchange volatility had also caused significant losses for businesses, making it increasingly difficult for manufacturers to plan and remain sustainable. He also identified the high cost of doing business as another major threat to pharmaceutical manufacturing, noting that businesses face expensive borrowing costs and often have to generate their own electricity.
“You will borrow money at 36 per cent, you will have to set up your own electricity factory, you have to generate everything you have to get to yourself,” Ojo revealed.
He further decried inadequate government patronage, calling for stronger government support for locally manufactured medicines. He stressed that Nigeria should adopt strategies used by countries such as India, where the government actively supports domestic manufacturers, arguing that such support could encourage local manufacturers to expand their production capacity and make the country less vulnerable to disruptions in international supply chains.
The speakers also raised concerns about Nigeria’s local manufacturing capacity, with Ojo pointing to the paradox of heavy import dependence despite significant installed manufacturing capacity remaining unused. He specifically said the country must find ways of increasing the local production of essential medicines instead of relying on imports to meet domestic needs.
On regulation, Ojo commended regulators for their efforts but urged them to combine their regulatory responsibilities with measures that facilitate industry growth. He said regulators must also act as facilitators rather than decelerators. According to him, regulatory authorities must have adequate resources to effectively carry out their responsibilities.
“The correct thing is that they are trying. There are things that they need to do, but we need to be asking what resources are available to them to be able to do things that they need to do,” he said.
The experts also advocated the development of a system for monitoring key medicine security indicators, including availability, affordability, traceability, utilisation verification and treatment outcomes. Ilomuanya specifically called for a dedicated mechanism to objectively track these indicators and determine how well Nigeria is performing in its efforts to secure medicines for its population.
The professor particularly called for the expansion of traceability technology across the pharmaceutical distribution system, saying manufacturers, distributors, pharmacies and other dealers should be properly registered and traceable.
According to her, a comprehensive traceability system would not only help sanitise the distribution chain but also create opportunities for pharmacists and young professionals interested in technology.
The professor further called for stronger political will and commitment to local pharmaceutical production, saying local manufacturing should not be viewed only from the perspective of establishing large-scale factories. She suggested that healthcare facilities could contribute to local production through appropriate compounding of medicines, arguing that such initiatives could help build capacity from the grassroots.
She added that hospitals and healthcare centres could become part of a broader local production ecosystem, which could eventually contribute to the development of a stronger pharmaceutical industry.
Dr Ojo re-emphasised that Nigeria does not need another government agency to address medicine security, stressing that several existing institutions already have the responsibility to tackle the problem.
“What we need is leadership that is intentional about achieving medicine security,” Ojo said, adding that Nigeria must make local pharmaceutical production a deliberate national policy and pursue it consistently.
The Merit Healthcare boss called for greater collaboration among industry stakeholders, urging pharmacists to explore the establishment of cottage industries and other forms of collective production.
“Nothing is reserved. We must work for it. Pharmacists and other stakeholders need to join hands to develop local manufacturing capacity,” he said.
Ilomuanya corroborated Ojo’s position on the need for collaboration among pharmacists, pharmaceutical manufacturers, regulators and government, stating that all stakeholders must work together to develop a political framework capable of supporting sustainable medicine security.
According to her, government, regulators and industry should no longer operate in isolation but must collaborate closely to address the challenges facing the pharmaceutical sector. She stressed that genuine cooperation among the three groups would be critical to ensuring that Nigerians have sustained access to quality, affordable and safe medicines.
She specifically charged stakeholders in the pharmaceutical industry to actively participate in politics and “be in the boardroom” where policies and decisions are made, noting that such participation would go a long way towards shaping the fortunes of the pharmaceutical industry in the country.
Dr Onyia, on his part, urged the government to demonstrate the necessary political will and provide the needed support towards the nation’s attainment of medicine security, stressing that Nigeria has what it takes to achieve medicine security.
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