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By Rebecca Samuel
Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria (ACPN) has urged the federal and state authorities to expedite long‑delayed reforms in the country’s drug‑distribution system and rein in what it term “unlawful” regulatory overreach stifling growth in the pharmaceutical sector.
ACPN at the 44th Annual International Scientific Conference at the International Conference Centre in Awka, called on the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) to fully implement the National Drug Distribution Guidelines (NDDG 2015) by completing Coordinated Wholesale Centres (CWCs) initially slated for Lagos, Anambra, Abia and Kano States, and later extended to Enugu, Oyo and Borno.
In his address, National Chairman, Ezeh Igwekamma, noted that of the seven pilot states, only Kano has achieved a 100 per cent success rate, relocating traders from Sabon‑Geri open market to a purpose‑built facility in the city’s Economic Centre.
Igwekamma praised thr Anambra Governor, Charles Soludo for creating what he described as the most “pharmacy‑friendly” state administration in the country, citing a string of pharmacists appointed to senior posts and the state’s top national ranking in primary‑health‑care indicators.
He said Anambra’s planned CWC in Oba “must become the most strategic in Nigeria” and welcomed the recent allocation of land for industrial pharmacists to build research and cold‑chain facilities on the site.
Turning to federal regulation, the ACPN leader condemned a recent National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) directive requiring operators in sealed drug markets at Idumota (Lagos), Ariaria (Abia) and Head Bridge (Onitsha) to register on a new NAFDAC portal.
He argued that the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN) alone is empowered to license pharmaceutical premises, citing more than 15 Federal High Court judgments affirming PCN authority. “There is no law in Nigeria that gives NAFDAC powers to register premises,” he said, accusing successive NAFDAC directors‑general of trying to “annex” PCN’s mandate and of pursuing revenue rather than public‑health goals.
Igwekamma also warned that NAFDAC’s proposed nationwide track‑and‑trace system and compulsory bioequivalence studies for generic drugs could double medicine prices, undermining President Bola Tinubu’s push to make medicines more affordable.
With investors now building new active‑pharmaceutical‑ ingredient plants and a cephalosporin facility, he said, the domestic industry could grow from its current value of about US $2 billion to US $10 billion within five years provided regulators “stop excessive and burdensome taxes, tariffs and fees.”
He pledged that community pharmacists will keep partnering with government on policies that “are right for consumers of health” and by promising continued professional development for ACPN members “in our march to boost the quality of the pharma workforce in Nigeria.”
