The National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) will not rest on its oars until it attains the World Health Organisation (WHO) Maturity Level Four certification, which will place pharmaceutical products manufactured in Nigeria in a better pedestal to compete favourably in the global market.
At the official commissioning of NAFDAC state office Ilorin, Kwara State on Friday, the Director General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, who made this commitment, recalled that the agency attained Maturity Level 3 in the WHO Global Benchmarking Tools last March, an achievement that has placed NAFDAC among the recognised regulatory Agencies in the world.
Adeyeye said that the remarkable huge achievements would not have been possible without a committed and dedicated workforce and a supportive Governing Council, stressing that ‘’the agency is not resting on its oars but is working assiduously towards the attainment of Maturity Level 4 and the sustenance of its developmental strides’’.
To achieve this, the NAFDAC DG emphasised the importance of sound infrastructure, equipment, a conducive work environment for staff, and accessible office locations for the stakeholders alike.
At the time she assumed office, she noted that most of the NAFDAC offices were situated at Federal Secretariats within the states or in rented apartments, which were not good enough for the agency’s corporate image. These facilities, she said, were in most cases difficult for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and other stakeholders to access.
NAFDAC was created in 1993 to regulate and control the importation, exportation, manufacture, advertisement, distribution, sale, and use of food, drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, bottled water, and chemicals.
To meet the agency’s mandate, Adeyeye said that the management, under her supervision, embarked on a journey of strengthening its processes through the establishment, implementation, and continual improvement of the Quality Management System.
She said that that Quality Management System in NAFDAC has transitioned over the years to a robust platform for institutionalising resourceful leadership, evidence-based decision-making, and engagement of a trained and competent workforce for effective customer-focused delivery of regulatory services.
‘’With the support of the Presidency, National Assembly, and the NAFDAC Governing Council, we commenced the building of State offices across the country out of which seven have been completed and we are now in the process of Commissioning them beginning with the Kwara State Office which we are witnessing today to the glory of God’’, she said.
According to a statement on Sunday by NAFDAC’s Resident Media Consultant, Sayo Akintola, Adeyeye also commissioned the agency’s Osun State office, while its offices in Ogun, Ebonyi, Sokoto, Yobe and Kebbi states have been completed and would soon be commissioned soon.
Adeyeye added that construction works have also commenced in Kano, Edo and Delta States and are now at varying stages of completion.
She said that the building had been purpose-built to help the agency achieve its mandate. “Apart from the six regular office rooms, we have a mini hall where we can conveniently relate with the sectoral groups and also train our staff. The complex also has a warehouse and store where unwholesome regulated products can be kept pending further regulatory activities.
‘’There is no doubt that this well-equipped office will enhance the activities and operations of the Agency within the state thereby contributing to the economic growth and well-being of our people’’, she said.
The NAFDAC boss expressed gratitude to the Kwara State Governor and the people of the state for the support the agency has enjoyed, adding, “We look forward to an enhanced co-operation and support as NAFDAC will continue to do her best to safeguard the health of indigenes and residents of Kwara State’’.
