…Local production pathway to drug security
From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
Federal government and stakeholders in pharmaceuticals have strengthened the push for ways to improve on local manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and other medical consumables.
The stakeholders made the request at the National Harmonisation Conference on the theme “Contextualising the Presidential Initiative to Achieve Local Production of Medicines and Vaccines in Nigeria in Abuja, at the weekend.
The conference brought together relevant stakeholders to create a forum for engagement across public, private, and community sectors to contextualise the
Presidential Initiative on Healthcare Value Chain (PVAC), and identify actionable steps for enhancing local production of medicines and vaccines, and provide support in synthesising outcomes into policy and programme recommendations.
Mrs. Olubunmi Aribiena, the Director of Food and Drug Services, Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, said the conference was aimed at continued discussions on expediting local production of medicines and vaccines in Nigeria.
She stated that without opportunity for local production of pharmaceuticals and other vaccines, Nigeria will remain vulnerable and at the mercy of foreign pharmaceutical companies as was experienced in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Aribeana, who was represented by Mrs. Adeola Olufowobi-Yusuf said that local manufacturing of pharmaceuticals also presents opportunities for job creation, international trade, economic growth, and national security.
“We can not afford to be caught flatfooted like during the Covid-19 pandemic. All hands must be on deck to find innovative ways to achieve the goal of unlocking the health sector value chain.
“Nigeria needs to position itself in such a way as to maximally benefit from the African Free Trade Continental Area (AfCTA), which is adjudged to be among the largest in the world.”
She also said that local manufacturing would enhance sufficiency, affordable, accessible, good quality, and also reduce the nation’s reliance on imported goods.
The conference facilitator, Dr. Olajide Adebola said the conference, which has the support of the PVAC, was designed to have a national and regional component, providing opportunity for important conversations on pharmaceutical issues.
He said the conference would assess the present state of the healthcare sector and come up with viable solutions to achieving the PVAC. “We will examine how we have been able to fare under these new policies and government interventions vis-a-vis the executive orders.
Adebola said the high cost of import component of the medicines was the major factor driving up the costs, which would be addressed with the available government interventions in the sector.
“Some years back, there were some medicines we could not manufacture, we imported them, but now we are manufacturing, and that is the importance of having sound, evidence-based, defensible government policies.
“In near future, cost of medicines will come down as all stakeholders and actors are acting towards ensuring safe medicines and affordable medicines for Nigeria,” he said.
Dr. Omotayo Hamza, the Supply Chain Management Officer of the World Health Organisation (WHO), said that Nigeria was not lacking in policies, strategies, and guidelines, but that the major challenge was implementation.
“That is why, for this particular meeting, there is one key word that I love, and that is ‘harmonisation’. We need to harmonise amongst the stakeholders, between ministries. Ministry of Trade is doing something about local production.
“Ministry of Health is involved in something. Science and Technology too and these are the major stakeholders. We need to harmonise along that line for us to have a very strong agenda that is implementable. Otherwise, we will have challenges.”
Dr. Chinelo Okonkwo, a pharmacist, while speaking on misgivings by some about the efficacy of Nigerian vaccines, said that they could be trusted as they go through all the stages of production before they could be certified fit for use.
According to her, vaccine hesitancy is experienced all over the world, and generally, there are adverse events following immunisation, but these are not enough to doubt the efficacy of Nigerian vaccines.
She, however, assured that Nigerian pharmacists are well trained and able to deliver the best vaccines for Nigerians. Our trust should be more on Nigerian products than parallel imports. Vaccine itself is a cold chain molecule, and in transporting them, if there is any break in that cold chain, that vaccine may not be potent. It is even better that it is produced here so that we can have it safe and efficacious for our people.”