-As NAFDAC DG interacts with stakeholders
The dividends of the remarkable stakeholders meeting, organised by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) for producers and distributors of cosmetics, agrochemicals and veterinary products, will linger longer in the minds of the participants, as the agency has promised among other things, to bring them respite from multiple registrations, imposed on the marketers by sister agencies.
Speaking at the one-day interactive session themed: “A Date with the Director General, NAFDAC”, held at the NECA House, Ikeja, on 17 September, 2018, NAFDAC DG, Prof. Moji Adeyeye, said she is already in discussion with the Director General of other agencies like the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA); Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and the Consumer Protection Council (CPC), to see how to bring an end to the issue of multiple product registrations, which is belabouring stakeholders.
Prof. Adeyeye, who heeded the general lamentation of stakeholders in eradicating several registrations of a product, explained that this is not in favour of ease of doing business policy in Nigeria, as it is hitting hard on marketers.
According to her:”We are working on it right now, as we are already talking with the Director General of SON, CPC, and NESREA. We have to come to an agreement, as it is the stakeholders that are at the losing end, because of many regulations and fees imposed on them. We are also talking about it at the vice presidency level, in terms of ease of doing business, and creating an environment, conducive for businesses”.
The NAFDAC DG, also pledged to look into the issue of police harassment on agrochemicals dealers, as the agrochemicals distributors complained bitterly about unnecessary threats and distraction of their members by the Police, as they go about their legal businesses in the society.
While announcing some laudable initiatives of the agency to support micro scale businesses, Prof. Adeyeye noted that NAFDAC has scaled down some of her processes for the micro scale cosmetics manufacturers without compromising standards and put in place policies that will drive growth in cosmetics MSME sectors in line with ease of doing business.
She however emphasised the decision of the agency to allow micro entrepreneurs in the cosmetics industry to use their personal kitchens to produce certain products, but with a caveat that untidy and shared kitchens will not be permitted for use.
Her word: “The boldest move made so far by the Agency is consent for use of personal kitchens to manufacture certain classes of cosmetics products under micro scale. Albeit, may I state clearly that kitchens shared by families will not be allowed neither will individual kitchens that are kept untidy”.
While appealing to the stakeholders to adhere to the rules and regulations of NAFDAC during product registration, she highlighted the generally observed lapses to include: untimely renewals of listing certificates, incomplete documentations e.g inadequate stock cards & utilization records, safety data sheets without chemical compositions, illegible attachments to the portal, noncompliance to good warehousing practice, etc.
On minimisation of pesticides residues on exported agricultural produce, she said the agency is setting up policies in terms of exportation of agro products, which will ensure that exporters bring their products to NAFDAC first for testing, in order to save the nation from further national embarrassment due to products containing high pesticides residues.
Mr Mamud Talid, representative of Pest Control Association of Nigeria, implored the NAFDAC DG to look into the formation of Pesticide Bill as it is done in other climes, as well as pleaded with the agency to make the intended increase in tariff reasonable enough to their level.
Mr John Nwabueze, who spoke on behalf of Cosmetics Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, stressed the need for NAFDAC to reduce faking of cosmetics in the country, as well as scale up penalty for fakers.
Nwabueze, also pleaded with the agency to put in place policies that will encourage exportation of cosmetics, which will enhance rapid growth of the industry.
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