The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has intensified its efforts to ensure Nigeria’s successful participation in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) by focusing on enhancing its regulatory capacity and fostering inter-agency cooperation.
In a statement on Friday, the agency said the focus was the core theme of a one-day capacity-building training session organised for NAFDAC staff by the Nigeria AfCFTA Coordination Office (@AfCFTANG), titled “The Role of NAFDAC in AfCFTA Implementation.”
In her address, NAFDAC Director-General, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, described the AfCFTA as a “defining milestone for the continent,” acknowledging that it introduces both opportunities and significant responsibilities for the agency in its role of safeguarding public health.
Prof. Adeyeye stressed that with an anticipated increase in the cross-border movement of regulated products, the agency must heighten its vigilance at ports and deploy enhanced intelligence-driven inspections.
These measures are crucial to preventing the entry of substandard and falsified (SF) products into Nigeria.
Furthermore, she highlighted NAFDAC’s strategic position as an “enabler of the Nigerian industry.”
She emphasised the necessity of efficient export certification and the streamlining of regulatory processes to empower local manufacturers to compete successfully across the continental market while strictly maintaining safety and quality standards.
The DG also underscored the importance of robust inter-regulatory collaboration, both among agencies within Nigeria and with counterparts across Africa.
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This cooperation is vital for harmonizing standards, strengthening mutual recognition arrangements, and effectively sharing intelligence on unsafe products.
She called on NAFDAC staff to embrace continuous learning to deepen their knowledge of the AfCFTA’s implications for regulatory science, urging them to act proactively as “regulatory ambassadors” for Nigeria and the wider continent.
Prof. Adeyeye concluded by reaffirming NAFDAC’s status as a model for regulatory excellence in Africa, a recognition underpinned by its WHO Global Benchmarking Tool Maturity Level 3 (GBT ML3) status.
