The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has strongly refuted claims circulating on social media alleging that it has secretly banned the sale and use of amoxicillin in Nigeria. The agency described the allegation as false, misleading, and entirely without factual basis.
In a press release signed by the Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Moji Adeyeye, she clarified that no ban either public or private has been placed on amoxicillin, a popular antibiotic in Nigeria. She emphasised that, as a responsible regulatory authority, NAFDAC communicates all regulatory actions transparently through its official and verified channels.
Prof. Adeyeye explained that Nigerians are consistently informed of regulatory decisions through public alerts, recalls, safety alerts, and blacklists, which are published on NAFDAC’s official website and other authorised platforms.
These notices clearly specify the affected product names, batch numbers, manufacturers, and the regulatory actions required to protect public health.
She further clarified that blacklisting is applied only to specific companies or products in cases of safety concerns, regulatory violations, or unethical practices, and does not constitute a blanket ban on a medicine’s active ingredient.
She noted that in recent months, the agency issued targeted safety alerts concerning certain brands and batches of amoxicillin. In August 2025, Public Alert No. 24/2025 announced the recall of Amoxivue (Amoxicillin) 500mg capsules due to low Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) content.
This was followed in October 2025 by Public Alert No. 34/2025, which addressed substandard batches of Astamol and Astamentin suspensions. Similarly, Public Alert No. 35/2025 notified the public of substandard batches of Anmmox and Jawamox suspensions.
Prof. Adeyeye stressed that these regulatory actions were strictly limited to the identified products and batches and should not be misconstrued as a ban on amoxicillin as a medicine. She also reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to safeguarding public health through transparent, science driven and evidence based regulatory actions
She concluded by urging members of the public, healthcare professionals, and medicine vendors to disregard the misleading video and rely solely on verified information published on NAFDAC’s official website, particularly the Recalls and Safety Alerts portal.
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